Forgiveness is Such a Simple Word
by HSMLUVER218
Summary: Now that Gabriella and her family are back living happily in Albuquerque, it seems that life is perfect. But what happens when old faces and new friends stir up some trouble? Troyella. Rated T to be safe. Sequel to Feel This
1. The First Day

**A/N: Hey!!! How are my favorite readers? I hope you're all doing fantastically despite the pressures of school! I'm pretty on top of the world right now, not going to lie. As a recently licensed driver I'm feeling pretty good. :D**

**So in the time I've been away, I've be crazy busy with school, friends, family and just life in general, but I did find time to work on this story. I'm really really excited about it because believe it or not, there is a scene in this story (which I haven't written just yet) that I have had in my head since I started working on Feel This. Honestly I have no idea how long this is going to be. I don't think it's going to be as long as Feel This but it'll probably be 20 chapters(?) Now of course I've said that, I'm going to be completely off base. You'll see. Regardless of the length, I hope you all enjoy the story you're about to embark on reading because as I said before I really believe it's going to be a great story!**

**This first chapter might be a little boring. I'm letting you know now that nothing exciting really happens in this chapter – the good stuff comes in the next chapter : ) It's more of just a transition from the first story to the second. **

**For the first time, I actually have 3 chapters written ahead of time. The nice thing, I learned, about writing chapters ahead of time is that you can skip around. So fun fact, even though I started the chapters is order, I didn't finish them in order. I actually finished the first chapter last. Oh and I decided on the title, pretty much like yesterday, so yeah….I do things backwards sometimes. Anyway…I'm hoping that'll help to keep my updating more regular, but I can't make any promises. I'm a junior and my academic life is really stressful, but also really important, so sometimes that means sacrificing my social life and FF :(**

**Wow, now that I've babbled on for a while I'll let you start reading (that is, if you've kept reading this entire time). So, enjoy…**

* * *

**Forgiveness is Such a Simple Word**

Chapter One – The First Day

The first day of school always brought the feeling of butterflies to Gabriella's stomach. In past years she had simply been fearful someone would find out her secret. She had always feared that she hadn't done her makeup properly and someone would notice the bruises. Maybe some new teacher would take a special interest in her, question her about scars he may have seen, wonder about her fatigue.

This year, however, was slightly different. Though she still felt nervous about the first day of school, it wasn't fear, it was anxious excitement. Although she had seen her friends all through the summer, it had been a while since they had all been together due to various trips each person had taken. She was excited to have everyone back together again. She also hoped that she would have her friends in her classes. Unlike before, she didn't want to be the lonely bookworm sitting in the corner, she wanted to be able to chat to her classmates.

As she walked into the school for the first time that year, she remembered what it had been like to walk the same crowded, bustling hallway just a year before. She remembered the need to be invisible, the fear of being discovered and the confusion of a new school that had engulfed her. This year, she felt excited walking down the same hallway, ready to start her Senior year, to see all her friends again and to dive into her schoolwork.

Gabriella made her way to Mrs. Darbus' classroom to receive her schedule and meet up with all her friends. She entered the classroom and saw Taylor and Kelsi sitting next to each other, in deep conversation. Smiling, she walked over to her two friends,

"Hey!" she greeted excitedly. Both girls looked up and beamed at Gabriella,

"Gabi! Hi!" Taylor greeted, standing up, so she could give her friend a hug. Kelsi was quick to do the same and hug her friend as well. Gabriella took the seat just behind Taylor and the three girls started chatting again.

"So, you have all your summer reading work done?" Kelsi asked.

"Yep. I finished the books a while back, but I just finished the quote analysis last night," Gabriella answered.

"Same! Well, except the part about finishing the books ages ago…" Taylor trailed off.

"Please tell me you didn't read them both yesterday," Kelsi gasped.

"Not both of them," Taylor insisted, "I finished Babbitt on Saturday and then I read Bartleby yesterday," she explained.

"Procrastination much?"

"Bartleby was only like 40 pages!" Taylor defended.

"Please tell me you nerds aren't already discussing school," Chad sighed, interrupting the conversation. The three girls turned to see Troy, Zeke and Jason also standing behind them.

Gabriella smiled at Troy and he was soon just behind her with his hands draped over her shoulders and interlocking with her own hands.

"Oh shut up," Taylor swatted her boyfriend, "I bet you didn't even do yours."

"My summer reading? As a matter of fact, I have that covered. I sparknoted it last night and I'll do the quotes during lunch," Chad informed his girlfriend proudly.

Taylor rolled her eyes, shaking her head at the same time.

"What he means is he'll _copy_ someone's during lunch," Troy whispered to Gabriella, causing her to giggle.

"_Anyway,_" Taylor began, changing the subject, "has anyone heard from Shar? Wasn't she getting back from Fiji yesterday?"

"Her flight was delayed; there was really bad flooding at the airport in Fiji so planes couldn't take off. She texted me yesterday afternoon to let me know she'd taken off and told me she would text me again once she landed, but I haven't heard from her since," Zeke explained.

"Hopefully she gets back soon, you know Darbus won't take that as an excuse for lateness," Chad reminded everyone.

"Maybe she'll let us off easier this year since we're seniors," Kelsi suggested, shrugging her shoulders.

There was a pause of silence before the entire group, including Kelsi burst into laughter,

"Yeah and on that same day, Sharpay will come to school in sweat pants," Taylor laughed sarcastically.

"Did I just hear my name used in the same sentence as sweat pants?" Sharpay demanded as she strutted into the classroom.

"Sharpay!" Taylor exclaimed happily, "You're here!"

"Well of course I'm here, but let me tell you, it was not an easy journey," She waved her hand dramatically, "First of all, our flight was delayed 10 hours, so that was just a disaster. Luckily though, Daddy got our room back, so we didn't have to waste 10 hours at the airport. So finally we got on our plane and that wasn't _so_ terrible, but when we landed, ugh, when we landed. First of all it was 4:30 in the morning, second of all I discovered my phone had died and then, of course, it so happened that our bags were the last to come out," Sharpay threw her hands in the air, "Finally by the time we were in the car, it was 6 am and I thought I would just charge my phone in the car, but can you believe it, they didn't have a plug in the limo," She looked to Zeke sadly, "So that's why I couldn't text you. Eventually, we arrived home, at 7 mind you, so that only left me an hour before school started." By the time Sharpay had finished with her extensive story, she had sat herself down in her seat, "And now I'm here after practically jumping in and out of the shower, throwing clothes on and whipping together my hair and makeup." She sighed and leaned back, "I'm exhausted."

Zeke was already behind Sharpay, massaging her shoulders, while the rest of the group glanced at one another.

"Oh! And you know what else?," Sharpay continued, "My good straightener was packed, so I had to use my old one, which doesn't do as good a job, so in the end I just had to put my hair up. Could this morning have gone any worse? I mean it's the first day of _Senior _Year."

"At least Fiji was nice, right?" Gabriella offered hopefully.

Sharpay bolted up straight, "Oh Fiji was fabulous! The beaches there are absolutely stunning and let me tell you…" Once again, Sharpay started an extravagant tale of her experience in Fiji. This time, however, her story was set at a much happier tone.

Gabriella felt Troy kiss her hair gently and she looked up at him questioningly,

"You're a saint, you know that, right?" he whispered in her ear.

Gabriella laughed quietly.

"I don't think I could've listened to her complaints for any longer."

"She's low on sleep, you know how some people get when they don't get enough sleep," Gabriella pointed out.

"See I told you, you're a saint, seeing the good in people," Troy reminded her.

Gabriella smiled and shook her head, "you're such a charmer."

Troy grinned proudly, "and you love it," he mumbled in her hair.

Gabriella chuckled knowingly, "Are we still coming over tonight?"

"You better be," he answered.

"What time?"

"My mom said anytime, dinner is at 6, so whenever you want to come on over is cool."

"Ok, should we bring anything?" Gabriella asked.

"Just yourselves," Troy replied.

"Perfect," Gabriella smiled. Just then Ms. Darbus entered the classroom and took a seat in her large arm chair, signaling class was beginning.

***

"Ok everyone dig in," Mrs. Bolton encouraged warmly.

Since Gabriella and her family had moved back to Albuquerque, the Bolton and Montez family often got together for dinner. They alternated hosting the dinner usually every other week. Despite the age gap between them, Lucille and Mariana had become very close friends. Even if their families weren't getting together the two women often had lunch.

The dinners felt less like two separate families eating together and more like one big family dinner to Gabriella as time went on. Though she'd never experienced a large family gathering, she'd always loved the idea of a big family; lots of cousins and aunts and uncles. She imagined that having the dinner with the Boltons was pretty darn close to a big family – or at least it felt that way.

"So Gabriella, are you still working?" Lucille asked curiously.

"Yeah, I'm working twice a week at Borders. As much as I liked working at the diner, at Borders I'm surrounded by books all the time _and _I get an employee discount," Gabriella explained enthusiastically. "So, if you ever need a book, let me know and I can get you the discount."

Lucille chuckled, "I will definitely hold you up on that offer. I'm glad you're happy with your job."

"So how was your first day back, Troy?" Mariana asked.

Troy shrugged his shoulders, "It was good. Boring really, I mean we sat through the same, 'hand in your homework on time, don't be late' lecture 7 times. Although, my history teacher, Mr. Miller, was really funny, I liked him, I guess."

"And you Gabriella? How was yours?" Lucille turned to Gabriella.

"Call me a nerd, but I thought it was wonderful," Gabriella grinned. "I have a great variety of classes that I'm all pretty excited for. My English teacher, Ms. D'Angelo, is amazing! I'm so glad I got her," Gabriella explained excitedly, "Oh and my Bio teacher, he's so great! He has so much insight about the changing world we live in. We spent the entire class discussing life and its definition. It going to be such a great class," she sighed with happiness.

"That's wonderful Gabriella," Lucille was grinning, oh how she missed having another girl in the house! And such an enthusiastic one at that. Girls always gave so many more details. She loved listening to the driven young woman's aspect on the world. Troy had been right, Lucille did notice a difference in Gabriella; she was much more confident and had really blossomed into a wonderful young woman.

Gabriella smiled before she felt Troy nudge her with the mashed potatoes in his hands. She smiled up as him as he passed her the bowl and as she scooped the potatoes onto her plate, she could feel Troy's eyes adoring her. Just as she finished plopping a scoop onto her plate, she looked back up at him, and was met with a famous Troy Bolton grin.

"What?" she whispered.

"Nothing," Troy insisted, before he grabbed the corn and started spooning it onto his plate.

Gabriella raised her eyebrow questioningly, but turned to pass the potatoes to her brother.

Lucille watched her son adore Gabriella and couldn't help but smile. She really was thankful that Gabriella had entered Troy's life. She was such a loving and caring young woman, who brought out the best in her son. Seeing Troy as happy as he was with Gabriella was a relief for Lucille. For the longest time she'd worried about her youngest. Yes, he was a happy teenager, but he'd always been so consumed in basketball that she worried what would happen if, god forbid, basketball was ever taken away from him. She wondered what he would have left. Now the answer was Gabriella. She knew that Gabriella had opened a new world for him and filled with so many different emotions. Though occasionally those emotions weren't always positive, more often than not, Troy lived in a blissful world.

She knew that like any couple, Troy and Gabriella would face their challenges. Knowing Gabriella's past she imagined some of them might be more difficult than normal teenagers. But, in her heart, Lucille really believed Troy and Gabriella were going to be happy for a long time.

* * *

**A/N: So there you have it! The very first chapter. Like I said, it was really just an intro, a connection between the story stories. In the next chapter, the real fun begins. Thank you for reading please review!**

**All my best, **

**~HSMLUVER218**


	2. A New Face and an Old One

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters. **

**A/N: Hey everyone! So I'd just like to start off by thanking everyone again for reading and reviewing! You guys all seem excited to be reading this story, which means a lot to me! I just wanted to clear one thing up. This is a sequel to "Feel This". I think a few of you were a little confused and that's totally my fault. I don't think I mentioned it in my author's note and I only mentioned it in the summary. So it's totally my bad if you were confused!**

**Anyway, I hope you all had a wonderful week! Enjoy…**

**

* * *

**

Chapter Two: A New Face and an Old One

Gabriella worked busily stocking the shelves with the newest bestsellers. It seemed that every time she walked away from the self, it was empty by the time she walked by again. Just as she was about to put the last book on the shelf her manager, Sophie, walked up to her with a tall blond boy by her side.

"Gabriella, this is Owen, he just started working here. I was hoping you'd teach him the ropes of this place," Sophie explained.

"Of course," Gabriella smiled, quickly putting the final book on the shelf. As Sophie walked away Gabriella grabbed the box she was unloading books from and led Owen toward the back storage room,

"So this is the storage room, all the incoming books are kept in here. Um, they're in alphabetical order, except when we have really, really important books come in, like the newest Harry Potter book," Gabriella explained, pointing to various objects about the room, before she picked up with her explanation.

After half an hour of touring the bookstore and teaching Owen how to use the cash register, Gabriella finally clasped her hands together and smiled, "Ok I think that's everything. Any questions?"

"Employee discount," Owen responded almost instantly.

Gabriella couldn't help but grin that was the first question that had popped into her head when she had been the new girl. Of course, she had been much too shy to ask, she wasn't outgoing as Owen seemed to be.

"It actually pretty easy. All you have to do is type in Employee when the discount codes box pops up," Gabriella answered.

"Awesome, so I can do that today right?" Owen questioned.

"Anxious much?" she joked. "But yeah, as soon as you're shift is over, you're good to go."

Owen pumped his fist, "Sweet. I have a whole list lined up."

"Let me guess. Mmmm I see you as kind of Stephen King kinda guy," Gabriella projected cocking her head to the left a little bit.

"As contemporary goes, yes. Can she get the classic author though?" Owen challenged.

Gabriella paused for a second and stared at Owen, almost awkwardly before she responded, "Charles Dickens."

Owen's mouth gaped open, "How the hell did you figure that one out? No one ever gets it!"

Gabriella shrugged, "It's a talent. Can you guess mine?" she smirked.

"Nicholas Sparks and Shakespeare," Owen answered confidently.

"Ooo now Nicholas Sparks is certainly a close second, but I have to go with Mary Higgins Clark. And Shakespeare is in his own category because he wins every time. I have to go with Nathaniel Hawthorne for classic though."

"But all girls like Nicholas Sparks," Owen protested.

"I didn't say I didn't like him, I do, he's just not my favorite. " Gabriella paused and shrugged, "I guess I'm not like all girls."

Owen smiled, the first real smile Gabriella had seen all day, other than when he'd found out about the employee discount that is.

Gabriella glanced up and gasped when she saw the time. She quickly fumbled to pull her phone out of her pocket, just to make sure the clock wasn't wrong. It wasn't.

"Crap, I'm gonna be late," she muttered before she looked back up at Owen, "Listen I have to run, I'm meeting some friends for lunch. I'll see you next week, though right?"

Owen nodded, "See ya later." He waved.

Gabriella smiled and waved her hand before she dashed around the bookshelf to the backroom to grab her coat and bag.

***

"Hey," Gabriella exhaled as she waved at her friends just as she stepped into Albuquerque diner, "Sorry I'm late I was helping the new guy." She made her way around the table where there was an empty seat next to Troy. A quick kiss on his cheek was their simple greeting.

"You know Gabriella, the work world is a very competitive place, you shouldn't be helping anyone out," Sharpay pointed out.

"She does have a point," Taylor agreed, "If there is only one position open, you're not helping yourself by helping others."

Gabriella laughed, "Guys, may I remind you that I work at a bookstore. I'm not running for President here."

"And besides Gabriella is much too sweet to resist helping anyone," Kelsi reminded everyone. The gang all seemed to agree.

"But!" Chad raised his hand as if he was about to make a very important point, "do NOT help a man put a couch in the back of his van in an empty parking lot at 1 in the morning," he said very sternly.

"Chad, that's just being stupid and we all know Gabriella is far from stupid," Zeke fired back.

"And I'm sure the Senator's daughter was very smart too, but look where it got her: a hole in a creepy serial killer's basement!" Chad exclaimed.

"Dude, I think you need to chill out," Troy chuckled, "Maybe we shouldn't have watched that movie last night because now you're super paranoid."

"I am not paranoid!" Chad insisted, "I just," he paused, "I'm just looking out for Gabriella's welfare," Chad answered, crossing his arms proudly.

"Whatever you say…" Troy teased.

"Why don't we order lunch," Gabriella suggested, "and not worry about me getting abducted by a cannibal."

45 minutes later all the food was almost gone and everyone was chatting happily.

"You know, if you wanted fries you could have ordered them," Gabriella pointed out to Troy as he stole, yet another one of her fries.

"Mmm...but I wanted onion rings. You were welcome to take some of my onion rings, but you didn't," Troy replied cheekily.

Gabriella scoffed, "Only because you practically inhale the food, so I didn't have time to."

"I'm a teenage boy, what can you do?" he shrugged innocently.

"Oh Troy Bolton, it's a good thing I love you," Gabriella warned him. Troy grinned and placed a soft kiss on Gabriella's cheek before he whispered, "I love you too," in her ear.

It wasn't long however, before the sweet moment was interrupted,

"Gabi, which day is better for you Tuesday or Thursday?" Taylor asked.

"Tuesday, I work Thursdays. Why?" Gabriella questioned.

"Well Sharpay just mentioned the drama club, which got me thinking about the scholastic decathlon. And since you said you'd join this year, I was just thinking about which day would be best for you," Taylor explained, "You're still on board, right?" she wondered aloud.

"Of course I am," Gabriella answered.

Taylor grinned, "Good!"

Gabriella's eyes glanced up and unexpectedly landed on a woman who was just entering the diner. She held onto her large black purse as she pushed open the door. Gabriella could hear her stiletto heels clicking on the floor as the dark haired woman approached the front counter. When the woman pushed her large sunglasses on the top of her head, Gabriella froze. She felt all the color drain from her face as she stared at the woman in the business suit waiting at the front counter.

_No. It couldn't be. That was impossible. _Gabriella shook her head, trying to rid herself of the idea. She looked again, trying desperately to find some proof that it wasn't _her_, but all her efforts failed. Her breath hitched as a waitress began leading the woman to a table. The woman passed the gang's table without a glance in Gabriella's direction, something for which Gabriella was thankful. She didn't know how she would have reacted if she had recognized Gabriella. So thank God she didn't.

_After all these years how could it possibly be? Maybe she was crazy. Maybe she was seeing things. Maybe – _

Her panicked thoughts were interrupted by Troy's voice,

"You ready to go?" he asked.

"Hmm?" Gabriella asked, staring blankly at Troy.

"Are you ready to go?" he repeated, a little slower this time.

"Yeah," Gabriella exhaled quickly, "Let's go."

As she stood up Troy watched her carefully, she was acting strange, very strange. Her voice was higher pitched and her face had gone white. She seemed anxious and it was odd because she'd been so bubbly earlier. Worried, he gently placed his hand on her upper arm,

"You ok?" he asked softly, "You seem worried about something."

"I'm fine," she smiled. Troy wasn't convinced though. "I'm fine" in Gabriella talk meant she had a million things racing through her mind, but she just didn't want to share. Troy decided not to push it, he didn't want to upset her.

"Ok," he nodded, "Let's go then, I'll walk you home," he offered, taking Gabriella's hand.

As Troy led her out of the diner, Gabriella didn't dare look back. There was no way – it couldn't be, yet it had to be, she couldn't be anyone else. There was no way her mother had just walked by.

* * *

**A/N: WHAAAATTTT????? Her mother? Did you see that one coming? See now didn't I tell you things would get interesting? **

**Oh! Can anyone guess the movie Chad is so freaked out by? Major props to you if you can! **

**Thanks for reading! Please review!**


	3. Only the Beginning

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters. **

**A/N: Hey Everyone! So the movie from last chapter was actually called Silence of the Lambs. It's a great movie to watch if you want to watch a scary movie, but not cry for a month after watching it. It's more of a mind rape movie. But it's SO good! Anyway…I hope you like this chapter! Enjoy…**

* * *

Chapter Three – Only the Beginning

Gabriella hummed happily to herself as she tapped her fingers on the counter. There were only 10 more minutes left until her shift ended and Gabriella was spending the last part of her shift working the cash register. It had been a quiet Monday afternoon, very few people were in the store.

Eventually, she heard stilettos walking towards the counter. Gabriella smiled and looked up, awaiting the arrival of the customer. The woman turned the corner, her dark wavy hair bouncing behind her. She had two large books in one hand and her blackberry in the other. When she reached the counter, she placed her bag and books on the counter and looked up at Gabriella.

Gabriella felt the color in her face drain and her smile fall as she looked straight into her mother's chocolate eyes.

This was not happening.

No.

Gabriella couldn't breathe. Would her mother recognize her? If she did, would she care? Would her mother ask about Lucas and Lily? Would she even remember Lucas and Lily? Wait, should _she_ say something to her mother?

Maria cleared her throat impatiently; Gabriella had been staring blankly at her for quite some time now.

"Oh, sorry," Gabriella gasped, realizing how much time she'd just spent starring at this woman. So maybe her mother wouldn't even recognize her own daughter. Gabriella picked up the books to scan them with her shaking hand. Should she be hurt that her mother didn't recognize her? Or should she feel some sort of relief that she didn't have to react to this situation. Speaking of reactions, how on earth was she supposed to be reacting? Happy? Relieved? Angry? Sad? Right now she was just speechless, numb.

"Uh that'll be $27.89," Gabriella managed to tell her. Maria held out her credit card for Gabriella to felt her mother's eyes burning a hole in her head as glanced down at the name written on the credit card: _Maria Ortiz._ So she had changed her name.

Gabriella waited awkwardly for the receipt to print. Now things had just gotten tense. Her mother was examining her, she could feel it. As the receipt printed painfully slowly, Gabriella mentally pleaded that her mother not say anything.

"I'm sorry, have we met before? You keep looking at me like you know me," Maria asked suspiciously.

Gabriella shook her head, "Could you sign here," she held out the receipt and a pen, changing the subject.

Maria signed it and handed it back to Gabriella, eying her strangely,

"Because you do look awfully familiar."

Gabriella smiled weakly and handed her mother a bag with her books and receipt in it. Just as she was about to take the bag, Maria's phone beeped. She glanced down at it and furrowed her eyebrows. Then, Gabriella could practically see the light bulb switch on top of her head, and Maria looked back up at her,

"You live around here, right…" Maria paused, looking for Gabriella's name. She quickly spotted it, "Gabriella?"

Gabriella nodded, "Yeah."

Great, she was going to have to speak again.

"Do you know where Carly's is? I have a meeting there in half an hour and I have no idea where it is." Maria confessed.

"Uh, it's on Winberry Street. You just go out of the parking lot, turn left, drive for a while then turn right onto Charles Lane , then it's another sharp right onto Main Street and I think the third street on the left is Winberry. Carly's is on the left side. It has a big metal sign with Carly's carved out in script, you really can't miss it," Gabriella explained.

"Thank you, you're a life saver," Maria praised before she quickly dashed out of the store.

As soon as Maria was out of sight, Gabriella let out a shaky sigh of relief. For once, she was thankful that Troy wasn't coming to pick her up today – he had basketball practice. Instead, she was walking home. She was glad to have the peaceful walk to try and think things out.

She quickly signed out, grabbed her stuff and waved goodbye to Owen before she headed out for the walk home.

No more than 10 minutes later did Maria come running frantically back into the store. Owen watched her strangely,

"Can I help you?" he asked cautiously. Maria turned to face the teenage boy,

"Yes," she exhaled, "Is Gabriella still here?"

Owen shook his head, "You just missed her. Her shift ended like 10 minutes ago."

"Dammit," Maria cursed under her breath. "Do you know where she went?" she asked hopefully.

"Uh, I'm pretty sure she was headed home. But, um, I definitely can't give that information out," Owen answered, a very confused look on his face.

"Right of course, of course you can't. I'll just, I'll stop by another time," Maria spoke nervously, running a hand through her hair before she left the book store, again.

Owen craned his neck to watch the woman exit the store. With a raised eyebrow, there was only one thought that ran through his head,

What the hell just happened?

**

_You make me smile like the sun  
Fall out of bed, sing like bird  
Dizzy in my head, spin like a record  
Crazy on a Sunday night_

Gabriella sang along to one of her new favorite songs on the radio as she worked diligently on her biology homework. She was happy to be able to escape thoughts of her mother that had plagued her mind since she'd left the book store. Finally, after hours of pondering the interaction, she's been able to move on and concentrate on her homework. She tapped her foot along to the beat of the music as she wrote down her thoughts on the definition of life.

_You make me dance like a fool  
Forget how to breathe  
Shine like gold, buzz like a bee  
Just the thought of you can drive me wild  
Ohh, you make me smile_

She swayed a little in her chair as she thought about what to write next. Suddenly she felt a pair of large hands on her shoulders. Screaming, she whorled around in her chair and quickly elbowed the intruder. Gabriella stood up, grabbing her desk lamp, as the intruder stumbled back a few steps. Just as Gabriella was about to smash the lamp on the man's head, he spoke, holding up his hand,

"It's me! Brie! It's me, Troy!" Troy exclaimed. Gabriella's eyes, finally met his and she realized it was Troy, not some vicious intruder.

Gabriella quickly put her lamp back and rushed over to Troy, "Sorry! Sorry! Sorry! Did I hurt you? I'm sorry!" she quickly exasperated, touching his chest, to make sure he was ok.

Troy chuckled and placed his hands on her forearms, "I'm fine, but jeez Brie, who knew you were such a ninja?" he laughed sarcastically.

Gabriella swatted him, "Hey! You really scared me! I thought you were some crazy serial killer!"

"You know, all you had to do was look," Troy suggested, "I mean, last I checked I don't look like a serial killer."

"It was the heat of the moment," Gabriella defended, "And at least I'm cable of defending myself, unlike someone…"she trailed off.

"Woah, woah. I could kick any serial killer's ass, any day," Troy said, very seriously.

"Whatever you say Troy," Gabriella teased as she turned back towards her desk to plug her lamp back in and continue working on her homework. Troy pulled up a chair beside Gabriella's desk,

"Oh, by the way, can we talk about the fact that your door was unlocked."

"Pssh, I don't really see a point in locking it," Gabriella answered nonchalantly, not even looking up.

Troy raised his eyebrow, "Yet you almost just bashed my head in because you thought I was a serial killer?"

"That's assuming that I thought the serial killer had come in through the balcony, when in reality the serial killer would probably come up the stairs. Remember, they can't climb balconies," Gabriella explained tapping her pencil towards him.

"I did it," Troy pointed out.

"Yes, but you're a strong, fit, agile athlete. Serial killers are creepy and old and…creepy."

"I still think you should lock it," Troy insisted.

Gabriella sighed, "Fine, I'll talk to my grandma about getting a lock fitted."

"Woah, hold up Brie," Troy held his hand up and Gabriella looked back up at him, "you don't even _have_ a lock?"

Troy couldn't help it when his protective side flared up, but he couldn't stand the thought of someone, who Gabriella didn't want, being able to get into her room.

Gabriella could see concern flash across Troy's eyes. Her face softened and she put down her pencil. She let her hand rest on his cheek as she spoke softly,

"Don't worry. I'm perfectly safe. There are no serial killers in Albuquerque," she assured him.

"But-"

Gabriella cut him off with a soft kiss.

"Besides, you said it yourself," she whispered before kissing him again, "I'm a ninja."

"Bu-"

Gabriella shook her head and kissed Troy again, cutting him off for the second time. She pulled away and smiled,

"You have nothing to worry about. Now, tell me Troy Bolton, what are you actually doing here?"

"Oh I just stopped by, because I can," Troy grinned.

"I can deal with that," Gabriella smiled back, "How was practice?" she asked.

"Yours truly's team dominated over Chad's team," Troy boasted proudly. Gabriella smiled,

"And I'm so proud of you," she said, a hint of sarcasm dusting her tone.

"Ha. Ha," Troy laughed dryly, "How was work?" he asked.

Gabriella froze. Just when she thought she was going to be able to forget about the how ordeal, it had immediately been brought forth again. _Act normal, act normal, act normal. He'll know if I lie._

"Uh….it was fine. You know the usual – books and people….buying them," Gabriella answered, not making any eye contact with Troy.

Troy raised his eyebrow, _that was a bit of an odd response_, he let it slide, "Sounds book store-ish."

Gabriella nodded, "Yep, because that's where I work, with people coming to buy books, all sorts of people and some even ask for directions," Gabriella rambled.

_Again with the weird response, ok something was up_, "Are you sure everything was ok?" Troy asked gently.

Gabriella could feel tears brimming in her eyes, _why was she crying?_ She immediately turned her head away from Troy, "yeah" she croaked quietly.

"Whatever happened I'm sure it's ok," Troy tried to assure her.

Gabriella could only shake her head, there was no way words were coming out of her mouth right now. She wasn't actually entirely sure _why_ she was so upset right now, when she'd been relatively ok since she'd actually seen her mother. _God, why did she have to always cry in front of Troy?_

"Brie," Troy whispered gently, his voice more serious. He was genuinely concerned now, "You can tell me."

Gabriella turned to Troy with teary eyes,

"I saw my mother," she managed to croak out. Now the gravity of the situation had really hit her and she didn't know if she was strong enough to deal with it. She could feel herself crumbling.

Troy's eyebrow's furrowed, "But I thought – I thought…" he trailed off, waiting for an explanation from Gabriella.

Gabriella shrugged her shoulders, "I thought so too," she sniffled, "But she walked into the book store today and asked for directions after she bought a book."

"Did she say anything?" Troy asked, a hint of anger underlying his voice.

The tears welled up in Gabriella's eyes again and shook her head, "she didn't know who I was," she choked out.

That was the worst part. That hurt the most. How could a mother not recognize her own daughter? Ok, so it had been 10 years, but Gabriella hadn't really changed that much in appearance, especially through a mother's eyes.

"Come here," Troy murmured, pulling the hurting Gabriella into a close embrace.

"Am I really _that_ forgettable?" she mumbled into his chest.

If Troy didn't already have enough reasons to kill this woman, Gabriella had just given him another one. He hated listening to her whimper in his arms. He kissed her hair, trying to sooth her aching heart.

"You, my dear, are not forgettable. Your mother is clearly crazy and doesn't know what she's missing," Troy whispered seriously.

"Besides, she's just one less person I have to share you with," he added, cheekily, hoping to lighten the mood. Thankfully he felt Gabriella smile against his chest. She looked back up at him and smiled softly through her broken expression.

"You always know how to make me feel better," she whispered. Troy reached his hands up her cheeks and gently wiped away the excess tears that had spilled out of her eyes.

"You know I don't like seeing you cry," he reminded her.

Silence fell over the pair for a few minutes as Gabriella continued to regain her composure. Then Gabriella spoke again,

"What if I see her again?"

Troy paused, trying to think of a good answer.

"I don't think I could handle another encounter, Troy," Gabriella confessed.

Troy placed a comforting hand on Gabriella forearm, "Maybe you won't have to, maybe she's just here on business and it was just a fluke that you ran into her."

Gabriella nodded, "yeah."

She hoped that he was right. She didn't really want to see her mother again. Somehow though, she didn't think that it was going to end today. Today was probably only the beginning.

* * *

**A/N: So there's chapter 3! Did you like it? A little more Troyella for you right? Oh and I just realized that I mentioned serial killers AGAIN. I promise this'll be the last time, for a while, at least. I don't want all of you thinking I'm too crazy…though I am a big crime show fan!**

**Anyway, that was all totally off topic. Thank you for reading! Please review!**


	4. An Old Wound

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters. **

**A/N: I know, I know, I know, it's been a long time since I updated, but guess whose teachers suck? You know things are bad when you spend more time on homework than you do sleeping…Anyway, here's the tip of the iceberg! Enjoy…**

* * *

Chapter Four – An Old Wound

The next evening, Gabriella walked down the stairs to help her grandmother with dinner. Just as she was rounding the end of the stairs, she heard the doorbell ring.

"I'll get it!" she called out before she opened the front door. The smile that was on her face for the unknown guest quickly vanished as her brown eyes locked with almost identical ones. Her mother looked timid, despite her sharp attire.

"Gabriella," her mother exhaled. Before Gabriella knew what she was doing, she slammed the door shut and quickly lent back against it for support.

Just then, Mariana came into the hallway, "Who was at the door?" she questioned.

Gabriella opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She definitely was not going to be able to answer that question.

"Gabriella?" Mariana pressed, walking down the short hallway to her granddaughter, "mi cielo, are you alright?" Gabriella could only stare blankly at her grandmother – she couldn't even think, let alone speak.

To make matters worse, there was a knock on the door. Gabriella's eyes widened and her whole body tensed up.

"Gabriella Montez what on earth is going on?" Mariana demanded, "Did you leave someone outside?"

Gabriella shook her head. She felt stupid, why couldn't she say anything? She stepped out of the way so her grandmother to open the door.

Mariana opened the door, and her hand flew up to her mouth, "Dios mio," she whispered breathlessly.

"Mama," Maria whispered before she threw her arms around the older woman. Even Mariana, the ever gracious woman, froze. Though she was angry with her daughter for abandoning Gabriella, Lucas and Lily, she was simply overcome with joy to see her daughter again. She hugged tightly back, squeezing her daughter in the long embrace. Pulling back, Mariana let her hand linger on Maria's cheek,

"Oh Mija, come in, come in."

Maria stepped through the threshold cautiously, looking around at her surroundings. Her eyes met briefly with Gabriella's, who quickly averted her gaze to the floor, wrapping her around more tightly around herself.

Maria's hand slightly covered her mouth as she marveled at her, now, grown up daughter. Gabriella looked up at her mother and for the first time, she spoke, coldly, "What are you doing here?"

Maria seemed slightly taken aback at Gabriella's coldness, she took a deep breath, "I was transferred here," she answered.

"No," Gabriella shook her head, "Why are you _here_?"

"I'm here to see you," Maria whispered, reaching out to touch Gabriella, "and you're so grown up, so beautiful."

Gabriella backed up until she was against the stair railing. Mariana sense the tension that was building in the hall,

"Why don't we sit down at the table?" she suggested, motioning back to the kitchen, "We'll put dinner on hold and just talk about this."

Maria nodded, and began to walk towards the kitchen. Mariana took Gabriella's hand and squeezed it reassuringly,

"Come on mi cielo, this can't hurt."

Reluctantly, Gabriella started walking down the hall.

Once the three were in the kitchen, Gabriella offered to make tea for the group in an attempt to prolong sitting down with her mother. She put the kettle on and leaned against the counter.

Mariana and Maria sat across from one another at the kitchen table,

"Mija, I have so many questions for you," Mariana confessed, "But for now, I just want to hear about how you are, what you're doing."

Maria took a deep breath, before she looked briefly up at Gabriella, and then back to Mariana,

"Well, I started working as a marketing and sales agent for ECO at their branch in New York City. Five years after that, they transferred me to Japan for a year, to try an ease some tensioned we'd been having. Then, after that was so successful, the company sent me to work at the headquarters in San Francisco. After, I worked there for 4 years, they offered me my own branch in Albuquerque, and I accepted," Maria explained proudly.

"Oh that's wonderful mija!" Mariana smiled, "I'm so proud of you."

Maria smiled, "How have you been?" Maria asked.

"Well, recently, I moved to the States, you didn't think you'd see the day that would happen, now did you? But it did and here and I am living with your three wonderful children," she grinned.

Maria's eyes softened, "Lucas and Lily are here as well?" she exhaled.

"Oh course, I could never separate Lucas and Lily from Gabriella, those three are too close," Mariana explained, smiling brightly.

Gabriella heard the kettle click, meaning the water had boiled. She quickly pulled three mugs from the cabinet and placed a tea bag in each one. She carefully poured the steaming water in each of the cups, and then, just for good measure ( though she was almost positive she remembered the answer), she asked her mother how she liked her tea.

"Black," Came her mother's quick reply.

Gabriella felt her heart twinge a little bit, before her mother had left, she been much too young to make tea, but she was certainly capable of knowing how her mother took her tea,

"_Milk, with a heaping spoonful of sugar because tea without sugar is like life without love, good, but not as sweet," _had been her mother's famous words.

Nevertheless Gabriella, dejectedly, made her own tea as well as her grandmother's with milk and sugar, and her mother's without.

She carefully brought the tea to her mother and grandmother, before she grabbed her own and sat down at the head of the table. She daren't look at her mother, so instead she stared down at the tan colored liquid steaming in her mug. She could feel her mother's eyes burning into her head.

"I just can't believe how grown up you are, Gabriella," Maria confessed, "You've got to be a Senior in high school by now."

Gabriella nodded, "Yeah, my last year of high school."

"Gabriella loves her classes this year. She's very intelligent and extremely driven. She reminds you a lot of you, Maria," Mariana explained.

"Really?" Maria was intrigued, "What's your favorite course?"

"English," Gabriella answered quietly.

"Then it makes sense you work at a book store," Maria smiled.

Gabriella faked a smile. She was uncomfortable with this whole, 'let's pretend nothing happened' thing they had going on here. How was no one else not ready to burst?

Mariana raised an eyebrow curiously, "I didn't know you knew that."

"I ran into her at borders yesterday afternoon," Maria explained.

"Oh," Mariana muttered meekly. Gabriella could tell her grandmother was hurt, she didn't even have to look up; she could hear it in her voice.

Gabriella's mother must have felt it to, because she put her hand over her own mother's, "Oh Mama, I thought Gabriella told you we ran into each other; I wouldn't have brought it up otherwise."

Gabriella's head snapped up. She was a little angry. Her mother was seemingly painting _her_ to be the bad guy.

"I'm sure you had your reasons Gabriella," Mariana implored.

"_She_ didn't recognize me," Gabriella whispered.

"You could have said something to me, mi cielo," Mariana countered, "We could have talked about it."

Gabriella shook her head, "Abuelita, she didn't _recognize _me."

"I don't understand why that means you couldn't tell me," Mariana responded.

"Because maybe I didn't want to believe it actually happened," Gabriella confessed quietly, looking down at the table.

"Why?"

Gabriella looked up, "Why? Because it hurt _so _bad the first time," she spoke harshly, tears brimming her eyes.

Maria gripped Gabriella's hand, "I'm so sorry."

Gabriella yanked her hand back, sharply, "No! You were supposed to be there for me," she was standing up now, "you were supposed to be the one who I could come and talk to when I had a boy problem or a friend problem, you were supposed to kiss me every night before bed, " her voice cracked, "you were supposed to hold me and tell it was going to be alright. But no," she clamped her eyes shut quickly, before opening them again, "You left. You left Lucas, you left Lily, you left _me_." Gabriella's voice then got dangerously low, "You abandoned us."

"I'm so sorry Gabriella. I was young, I didn't know what I was doing," Maria tried to defend herself.

"Young?" Gabriella scoffed, "You were 27 years old. You knew _exactly _what you were doing." Her tone was harsh and biting.

"Gabriella," Mariana said sternly, "Don't speak to your mother that way. Why don't we just sit down like adults and discuss this."

"My mother?" Gabriella questioned incredulously, "_She _didn't _want_ us. _She _thought we were a hassle, that we'd held her back. She is not my mother."

"That's enough Gabriella," Mariana warned.

Gabriella couldn't believe her ears. Was this actually her grandmother? She was acting like everything was perfectly ok. Like her mother had done nothing wrong.

"No abuela," Gabriella started tearfully, "it's not enough. You're acting like she hasn't done anything wrong, like she didn't hurt us all. Why is it suddenly ok for her to just waltz in here and be forgiven?"

"Families forgive each other Gabriella," Mariana reminded her.

Gabriella felt like had just lost the battle, she let her arms fall limp as she shook her head, before looking directly at her mother, "Families don't leave each other."

She was done. She couldn't stand here any longer and defend herself. She was done crying in front of Maria and Mariana. She was done yelling.

"I need to go for a walk," she whispered, before she turned to leave the kitchen. Gabriella heard Maria call after her and then her grandmother hush her.

She wasn't going back into that kitchen though, not while _she_ was sitting there. All those feelings she'd blocked out for months now had suddenly come rushing back. The hurt, the anger. She'd forgotten how much all of it hurt. How deep in cut. She was glad to escape to the outside world as she shut the front door behind her.

And then, she just started to walk.

* * *

**A/N: So, I'm not sure how much I ****like thi****s chapter. Hopefully I hit the emotions right, but it was hard, not going to lie. Let me know what you think! Thank you for reading, please review! **


	5. Here in Your Arms

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters. **

**A/N: PLEASE DON'T HATE ME! Hopefully this chapter will make up for it! Enjoy…**

* * *

Chapter Five – Here in Your Arms

Gabriella had been walking for a good half an hour. She didn't know where she was going really, she was just walking. Then, she glanced to her right and saw a narrow path through the trees. Peering down the path, she saw a slightly decrepit looking playground - well really a slide and swing set. She walked cautiously down the path into the small grassy opening where two swings stood, with a small slide on their left side. She gingerly walked over to the swings and pulled down on them, just to make sure they were sturdy. When the metal structure didn't collapse, Gabriella sat down on one of the swings and pushed herself gently back and forth.

_What is it about swings that always makes you feel better?_ Gabriella wondered to herself. Maybe it was the soothing rocking motion that calmed the soul. She closed her eyes and let the cool Albuquerque breeze breathe on her face.

She sighed as she listened to the creaking sound the swing was making every time she swung back and forth. Somehow that noise was so much better than the mental screams that had filled her head for the past half an hour.

She didn't know what she was going to do. She was so angry.

How dare her mother show up and expect everything to be alright. She hadn't even meant to come back and see her children. She'd just happened to be in the same town.

How was her grandmother forgiving her mother so easily as well? Her grandmother had been hurt too. Maria had disappeared for years and not even mentioned it to her own mother. And now, Mariana was acting like nothing was wrong. How could she do that?!

Gabriella was upset, she hadn't wanted to yell at her grandmother. In fact, she hated yelling in general. So yelling at someone she cared about made her feel guilty.

She just didn't know what she was going to do. Should she stay mad at her mother forever? Should she try to work things out? Should she forgive her?

Gabriella just didn't know.

After a while, it started to get dark, the cool breeze had turned colder and Gabriella could feel herself shivering a little bit. She should probably go home. But she didn't think she could face home right now. The other option she figured was to go to someone else's house. The only downfall to that was she didn't want to seem like a burden, again. She knew she'd worried all her friends sick last year and she knew it had been hard on all of them. Over the summer she'd felt like finally she was gaining her footing again and now she was falling again.

Yes, she'd told Troy she'd seen her mother, but only because he had a way of drawing information out of her. As much as she felt like she needed to, she didn't want to have to go to him crying, yet again. She was tired of being the weak one, she wanted to be strong.

She secretly wished she'd brought at a thicker jacket, because as crazy as it sounded, she was seriously considering spending the night here.

She let herself shiver for a while longer. The physical numbness actually numbed her emotional pain as well. Though as she continued to sit in the park, the numb turned into a stinging cold that seemingly bit her skin. She decided to get up from the comfort of the swing and walk, to at least try to get her blood flowing again.

Gabriella hugged her arms around her waist, keeping the heat within her own body. Walking did help get the blood circulating again; as she walked she could feel herself warming up, but just a little bit, a very little bit.

She picked her up her pace, in hopes that that would warm her up as well. Glancing down she didn't notice the mailbox that she suddenly appeared in front of her. Stumbling back a little and shaking her head to gain back her composure, Gabriella looked up at the mailbox:

BOLTON

She blinked a few times.

"Of course," she muttered to herself. And they said clichés didn't actually happen in real life. Yet, her heart had led her here, of all the places in Albuquerque.

Part of her wanted to run inside and seek solstice in Troy's arms, but another part of her, didn't want to let herself to do that.

She didn't even know what time it was, she realized. Turning up at the Bolton's house, at God knows what time, obviously freezing cold and just about ready to break down, didn't seem like the best idea to Gabriella. Yet the idea of being in his strong arms, still seemed like the perfect cure to her heartache.

It was then, that Gabriella saw bright car headlights coming towards her. She squinted her eyes in an attempt to see who was driving the car.

The car came to a stop just as it was about to turn into the driveway. The passenger seat window opened and Mr. Bolton leaned over,

"Ms. Gabriella Montez, what a lovely surprise," Mr. Bolton greeted.

"Good evening Mr. Bolton," Gabriella smiled, "How are you?"

"I'm good thank you. What brings you here tonight?" he asked.

Gabriella shrugged, "You know, I just decided to stop by," hoping Mr. Bolton wouldn't notice her shivering body or her sad eyes.

Mr. Bolton chuckled, "I could have guessed that was the reason. Why don't you head on in instead of standing out here in the cold," he suggested.

Gabriella nodded and let Mr. Bolton pull into his driveway before started walking up the driveway. She sighed, there was no way of getting out of this now.

Gingerly, she rang the Bolton's doorbell. It wasn't long before Lucille opened the door,

"Gabriella!" she exclaimed, quickly hugging the teenage girl. "Oh goodness, you're freezing. Have you been sitting outside all evening or something?" Lucille joked. "In any case, come inside and warm up," she beckoned Gabriella to come inside. Gabriella stepped through the threshold and gently closed the door behind her.

"So it's just you tonight?" Lucille asked.

Gabriella nodded, "Yeah just me, I decided to pop by."

"Well it's lovely to see you. Troy is in his room, if you want to head on up. Unless of course you're not here to see him, which I don't think is the case," Lucille chuckled.

Gabriella smiled, "As much as I'd love to stay and chat with you, I think I'm going to head upstairs and surprise Troy."

"Ok sweetie. If you need anything, I'll be downstairs," Lucille reminded her. Lucille could see through Gabriella's smile, straight into her broken eyes. Something was wrong, terribly wrong. She watched as the teenager walked up the stairs, she was thankful that Gabriella had decided to come to their house though, rather than stay outside in the cold, which Lucille assumed had been the other option.

**

Troy was sitting in his room working on his history homework, when he heard a knock at the door. Without pausing his pen he called out,

"Come in."

As he continued to write he could hear the door open. Then silence. Oh god, that only meant one thing, his mother was surveying his, messy, room. It was better if he stuck up for himself now,

"I know Mom, I'll pick up my clothes after I'm finished with this history," he reasoned, keep his eyes focused on the paper, he just had to finish this last sentence before he forgot his train of thought. But he finished up the sentence, he realized that his mother hadn't replied, at all. And _that_ certainly was not like his mother.

"Mom?" he questioned as he turned around in his chair. His eyes, however, did not fall on his mother, but on his favorite petite brunette. He could feel his eyes light up,

"Brie" Troy grinned, "I can't believe you're here!" He got up from his chair and started to stride over to her. As he got closer he noticed that the bubbly Gabriella who, now that he thought of it, would have had some witty remark to his confusion as to who was at his door, was not the Gabriella who stood at his door. In fact, as he studied her, her deep brown eyes told a very different story.

When she had only smiled and not said anything, Troy knew for a fact something was wrong.

"Brie?" his voice softened as he tried to make sure she was ok. She looked up at him with sad, hurt eyes.

Gently grazing her upper arms he whispered, "Are you alright?"

He watched the internal struggle he knew was ragging inside of her. He could see her fighting to keep control of herself.

Then, she shook her head and broke eye contact with him.

Troy quickly, but smoothly, reached behind Gabriella to push his door shut and then lead her to his bed, to sit down. They sat facing each other, but Gabriella refused to look at him.

"Babe," he coaxed, "What happened?"

Gabriella just kept shaking her head. It wasn't long before Troy saw tears drip down from her face onto his bed covers. He instantly pulled her close, letting her head rest on his chest.

His mind kicked into super concerned boyfriend mode. What on earth was wrong? Immediately his mind jumped to the worst possible scenario, of course.

_Her father? No he was in jail. Parole? No, he's been in jail for like 6 months. Had someone died? No, someone would have told mom. Right? What could it be? Scott? Oh please no. _

His heart ached as he listened to Gabriella sniffle and weep into his chest. He stroked her soft hair, trying to ease the pain in any way he could.

"Brie, you're starting to scare me," he whispered, "you can tell me what happened."

Gabriella quickly lifted her head up, and furiously wiped her tears, "Oh god, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, look at me crying all over you," she sniffled, throwing her hands up.

Troy's hand touched Gabriella's upper arm comfortingly, "hey, hey," he soothed, "No, no, don't be sorry."

"But I'm always coming to you in tears," Gabriella reminded him.

"That's what I'm here for," Troy pointed out gently, "I'm here for you, whenever you need me. Ok?"

Gabriella nodded.

"Now, are you going to tell me what's wrong?" he pressed gently.

Gabriella looked up at him again, "Do you remember yesterday when I told you about the bookstore?"

Troy nodded.

"She came to our door today," Gabriella whispered.

Troy could feel his eyes widen. Now he hadn't expected this.

"Oh Brie, what happened?"

"She came to our house and we talked, I yelled and cried and, she didn't want sugar in her tea, she always had sugar in her tea," Gabriella cried softly, tears falling from her eyes again. She broke eye contact with Troy, again, as she wept quietly.

"Why don't we go sit by the head of the bed and you can tell me happened, hm?" Troy suggested.

Gabriella nodded and crawled up the top of Troy's bed. Troy leaned up against the headboard, and wrapped his arm around Gabriella's petite frame. When Gabriella sat up next to Troy, her was able to rest perfectly on his shoulder. Troy pressed a gently kiss into Gabriella's hair,

"Let's start with what you talked about," he insisted.

"She and my grandma just talked about life. They were talking like nothing was wrong, like they were just people who hadn't seen each other in years," Gabriella explained, "I couldn't deal with that, I can't just forgive her, she broke me, she broke our family, how can I forgive her?"

"You don't have to forgive anyone," Troy assured her.

"Then how can my grandma forgive her so easily?" she questioned.

Troy sighed, "I don't know Brie, sometimes mothers will forgive anything their children do."

"But what do I do now?" Gabriella asked desperately, her voice cracking, "My grandma hates me."

"Woah, your grandma certainly does not hate you Brie, I don't know where you got that idea."

"She does now, I yelled at her," Gabriella confessed, shamefully.

"Just because you yell at someone doesn't mean you hate them Brie," Troy reminded her.

Gabriella shrugged, "I know, but I was just so angry at her. She was supposed to be on my side, not hers."

Gabriella turned her head to look up at Troy, with big, desperate brown eyes, "You're on my side right?"

Troy's eyes softened, "Brie, I'm on your side," he promised before he pressed a lingering kiss into her hair, "always."

There was a long pause as Gabriella sat in the warm comfort of Troy's arms, before she sighed,

"I don't know how to go home."

"What do you mean?" Troy asked.

"I just, I'm angry with my grandma, I'm not ready to forgive my mother, I don't know how I can go home," Gabriella confessed.

"You're forgetting that your grandma is going to forgive you as soon as you walk through that door," Troy reminded her.

Gabriella looked up at him, "How do you know that?" she asked quickly.

Troy chuckled lightly, "Sometimes Brie, you underestimate how much your grandma loves you. Trust me on this one."

Gabriella nodded, "But what about my mother. What should I do about her?"

Troy paused, trying to come up with an answer. There didn't seem to be an easy solution to this mess.

"The way I see it, there are two roads you could take right now, you could either forgive her, or just have a broken relationship forever."

"I don't want to have a broken relationship with her Troy, I want things to be like you and your parents. But, I can't forgive her. She hurt me so badly," Gabriella whispered, tears falling from her eyes.

Troy instinctively squeezed Gabriella in an attempt to stop her tears.

"Maybe you just need to give it some time," Troy suggested.

"Then what about now?"

"Now," Troy spoke slowly, "right now, I think you should try to be civil with your mother. I think you should try to rebuild your relationship. You don't have to let her in too deep, you don't have to forgive her, just talk to her."

"You think I can do that?" Gabriella questioned, sniffling.

"Brie, I think you, of all people, can do anything you set your mind to," Troy told her sincerely.

Gabriella smiled through watery eyes and kissed Troy's cheek,

"I'm so glad I came," she whispered.

"How long were you outside?" Troy asked, not entirely sure he wanted to know the answer.

Gabriella shrugged, "I don't really know, a few hours?"

"Brie…" Troy began, but Gabriella quickly cut him off,

"Don't worry, it wasn't _that_ cold. I'm fine," Gabriella assured him. Troy nodded.

"So how did he Lucas and Lily react?" He wondered aloud.

Gabriella gasped and shot up, turning to face Troy,

"Oh god! I didn't even think of them! They were upstairs the entire time!" she ran her fingers through her hair. "I can't believe this!"

Troy reached out, to grab Gabriella's hand, "Hey, I didn't mean to upset you."

"It's not your fault, no, it's my fault. I can't believe I didn't consider their reaction. I should go back, right? I should have brought them with me," Gabriella spoke frantically.

Troy leaned closer to Gabriella, "Brie, calm down, Lucas and Lily are going to be fine."

"But, but, I should have been there, I should have talked to them," Gabriella protested.

"It's ok, you can talk to them later, when you've gotten your own feelings sorted out. It's alright to take care of yourself first Brie," Troy reminded her.

"But-" she began to protest.

Troy shook his head, "We're going to worry about you right now, not about anyone else. Now, come here again." Troy pulled on Gabriella's hand gently. She complied and crawled back towards the head of the bed. She positioned herself next to Troy, again, her head resting comfortably on his chest. He let his arm fall around her, drawing her in closer.

"This is all so much," Gabriella whispered.

"I know, I'm here for you though for as long as you need me," Troy whispered back.

Silence fell upon the pair, as Gabriella closed her eyes and listened to Troy's strong heartbeat. She felt a calmness wash over her and she sat comfortably with Troy. She was thankful that Mr. Bolton had pulled into the driveway and invited her in. In all honesty, without his invitation, she probably wouldn't have gone inside. Now, she was thankful that she had because Troy had made her feel worlds better. Though she certainly wasn't quite ready to go home, she didn't feel like she was drowning in her troubles.

Gabriella could feel her eyelids drooping. She was exhausted. This evening's developments had really taken a toll on her. Her heart wasn't the only organ aching, her brain was as well. It pulsated painfully whenever she left herself think about what she was going to have to go home to.

With every passing minute it was getting harder and harder for Gabriella to get her eyes open again after closing them. Troy's warm hand gently rubbing her forearm was not making it any easier to stay awake. She could feel her thoughts spacing out, until she had none left at all, only blackness.

Troy listened carefully to Gabriella's breathing until it became even. He waited until her chest rose and fell periodically for a good five minutes. Then, he decided, she was asleep. He let her sleep in her arm, while he pondered their conversation.

He hated seeing Gabriella this distressed. He wished someone would just cut her a break. She'd been through so much already, why did she deserve this?

He hoped that he would be able to help her through this. He wasn't entirely sure what he was doing, he just wanted Gabriella to feel better, to feel happy again. He hoped that the pain and confused written on Gabriella's face wouldn't stay there forever. He was thankful that she was currently resting peacefully in his arms.

Carefully, he slowly pulled his arm out from Gabriella and then rolled off his head, trying not to disturb her. He crept to the other side of his room and shut off the lights, leaving Gabriella to sleep in his bed. Quietly shutting the door behind him, Troy made his way down the hallway and down the stairs to the kitchen. His mother was sitting at the counter reading "Real Simple" with a mug of coffee in his hand. She turned to her son and smiled brightly,

"Looking for a snack?" she asked warmly.

Troy shook his head, "Nahh, I'm not hungry."

"Has Gabriella left?" she asked disappointedly.

"Actually Gabriella's sleeping in my room right now," Troy explained, "I was hoping that she could spend the night," he admitted, scratching the back of his neck nervously.

Lucille put her magazine down and patted on the counter for Troy to sit down.

"Is everything alright with her?" Lucille questioned worriedly. Troy looked up at him mother, debating whether or not to tell her. He trusted him mother not to act irrationally. He knew she would have valid advice and could act as another shoulder for Gabriella to lean on.

"Her mother is back, mom. She came back today," Troy explained quietly.

Lucille gasped quietly, "I didn't expect this to happen so soon. I guessed it would happen eventually, but not this soon. How is Gabriella?"

Troy sighed, "She's upset, she's really upset. She just fell asleep, I'd hate to wake her and send her back home."

Lucille nodded, "Of course she can stay the night, I'll call Mariana and make sure she's ok with it."

Lucille grabbed the phone and dialed Gabriella home number.

"Hi Mariana, it's Lucille….Yes, yes she's here, you didn't know?...Yes our Troy and Gabriella are very predictable like that. I actually wanted to talk to you about Gabriella. It seems she has fallen asleep at our house and Troy doesn't want to wake her to bring her home. He was hoping that she could spend the night. I'm ok with it, as long as you are…Of course, Troy would bring her to school tomorrow….Yes, oh certainly yes, I was just going to talk to him about that….OK, I'll call you again tomorrow…Ok, goodbye."

Lucille hung up the phone and turned to her son,

"Mariana said she was fine with it," Lucille said, "However, she and I both agreed that you will not be sleeping in the same room."

Troy groaned, "Mom, please don't do this now."

"I won't go any further as long as you either move Gabriella to the guest room, or you sleep in there yourself," Lucille told her son.

"I'll go sleep in the guest room," Troy promised, "I'm going to go up there now, I have some homework to finish up before I go to bed. I'll see you in the morning, mom." Troy kissed his mother's cheek before he went back upstairs.

Silently, he opened the door to his room and grabbed the history homework he'd been working on and the math homework he'd been neglecting before Gabriella had come over. He picked up a pair of sweatpants to wear to bed and quietly crept over to his bed, where Gabriella was sleeping. Kneeling beside the bed, his face was inches from hers. As he brushed the hair out of her face, she stirred and her tired eyes opened,

"Troy?" she murmured.

"Shhh…go back to sleep Brie, you're staying the night," Troy coaxed gently.

"Are you staying?" Gabriella asked hopefully.

Troy smiled sadly, "I have to go sleep in the guest room, my mother's orders."

Gabriella frowned, "I could go sleep in the guest room if you wanted your bed," she offered.

Troy shook his head, "Absolutely not, look how comfortable you are. You can stay here."

Gabriella's eyes closed again, "Good, I like the way your bed smells," she whispered.

Troy chuckled quietly, "Go back to sleep Brie, I'll see you in the morning," he whispered, kissing her forehead firmly.

"I love you," she murmured almost incoherently.

"I love you too. Sweet dreams Brie."

* * *

**A/N: Troyella win? I think so. There's going to be more Troyella next chapter – yeah get excited :D. Let me know what you thought! Thanks for reading! Please review!**


	6. A New Day

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters. **

**A/N: Hey guys! I'M BACK! I hope you all are enjoying your summer! Make the most of it! I cannot tell you guys how much it means to me that you all understood the short break I had to take. Everyone was so supportive and I am so thankful for that. I fully intend on finishing this story (mostly because I love it too darn much :D). This chapter is filled with some fluff, some comforting words and a little bit of drama. I hope you like it! Enjoy…**

* * *

Chapter Six – A New Day

Gabriella blinked her eyes open. Squinting, she looked around the dark room.

Despite the darkness she could tell this was not her room. Not at all. This was Troy's room. Why was she here, again? Oh right…

She groaned and rolled onto her stomach, burying she face into Troy's soft pillow, as she remembered what had transpired yesterday. Rolling over again, she glanced at the clock:

5:30

How was she even awake? She closed her eyes and tried to fall asleep again. She had no such luck. So, she sat up and stretched her stiff body. She felt awake, but gritty and gross. Getting up from the bed, she clumsily made her way over to the light switch. When the harsh lights came on Gabriella squinted, hoping her eyes would adjust more quickly.

She caught a glance of herself in Troy's mirror. Good God, she was a mess. Her shirt was horribly winkled, her usually warm complexion was pale, and her hair, oh dear, it was a disaster.

She made her way into Troy's bathroom and splashed cold water onto her face. The icy water helped to make her feel less grimy and helped to straighten out her thoughts. She wiped the water off her face and stared at herself in the mirror.

It was then that she heard her stomach growl, loudly. That's right, she hadn't eaten dinner last night. For a few seconds she debated whether or not she should go downstairs to find something to eat. It wasn't her house, but Lucille _had_ reminded her on numerous occasions that this house was her house as well. Besides, no one would be up anyway, so she could just grab some cereal without disturbing anyone.

She quietly tip-toed out of Troy's room and then down the hallway until she came to the stairs. As she stepped down the stairs she winced when a stair creaked. She paused, but then continued on her way, until she finally got to the bottom of the stairs. Letting her hand lightly feel against the wall to guide her, she was soon in the kitchen. Flipping on the lights, she walked over to the pantry and pulled out a box of Cheerios. After she placed the Cheerios on the counter she started opening and closing cabinets until she found a bowl, then she did the same until she found a spoon in one of the drawers. Finally, she opened the refrigerator and pulled out a carton of milk. She sat on a stool at the counter and poured the cereal, then milk into her bowl.

Just as she was about to start eating, a voice startled her,

"Gabriella?" a voice came from behind her. Gabriella nearly jumped out of her skin, before she turned around and saw it was Lucille standing in the threshold of the kitchen.

Gabriella jumped up from her stool,

"Did I wake you? I didn't mean to wake you, I was just hungry and figured you wouldn't mind. I'm sorry," she started apologizing frantically.

"No, no, don't worry dear, I'm always up at this time," Lucille assured her, "Mind if I join you?"

"Not at all."

By the time Lucille had grabbed a bowl and a spoon, Gabriella was sitting on the stool again and was eating. Lucille sat down next to Gabriella, and poured her own cereal and milk. Lucille looked over at the young brunette sympathetically,

"What has you up this early?" Lucille questioned.

"I'm not sure, I just woke up, and now I can't go back to sleep."

Lucille nodded, "and how are you doing?" she asked gently.

Gabriella looked at Lucille slightly confused, was Lucille talking about what Gabriella thought she was? But how?

"Troy told me," Lucille explained quickly as if she could read Gabriella's mind.

"Better than I was yesterday," Gabriella admitted. "Thank you for letting me stay over, I really appreciate it."

"Anytime Gabriella, you know you're practically family in this house."

Gabriella smiled weakly, "You're so good to me, I don't know what I would do without you guys."

"You would have figured something out, I have no doubt of that. You'll get through this, I promise. You're a strong young woman Gabriella; your calm after the storm will come," Lucille assured her.

"Can I ask you something?" Gabriella requested.

"Of course."

"If you were her, what would you want? What would you want me to do?" Gabriella asked slowly.

Lucille thought for just a moment before she looked back to Gabriella,

"Right now, I think you need to be worrying about yourself and what you want, not what anyone else wants."

"I know, that's what Troy said. But I just want to know what's going on in her head, I'm not a mom, I don't know what she's thinking," Gabriella explained gently.

"Mothers love their children, always. Even if they don't always show it, they never stop. She loves you Gabriella, I think you just need to give her a chance to show it. I'm not saying that you have to rush back home and forgive her today, I'm saying that when you're ready, you should talk to her, just talk," Lucille advised.

Gabriella nodded, "When I'm ready," she whispered.

A nice silence fell over the pair as they continued to eat their cereal. When Gabriella had finished she stood up to take her bowl the sink. Lucille quickly protested,

"Don't worry about that Gabriella, I'll clean up. Would you like to take a shower before Troy gets up? You're welcome to. I can get you some of Nora's clothes to wear, so you don't have to go to school in what you wore yesterday," Lucille offered.

"That would be good," Gabriella answered, "Thank you."

* * *

Freshly showered and wearing her own jeans and one of Nora's t-shirts, Gabriella crept into the guest room. Troy was on his stomach, with his arms and legs spread all over the queen-sized bed. She crouched down next to the bed,

"Trooooyyyy" she whispered, "Troooyyy, wake up."

Troy groan and rolled on his back, "No," he mumbled.

Climbing up onto the bed, Gabriella kissed Troy gently,

"Mmm" Troy mumbled pulling Gabriella's head closer to his. As the kiss became more heated, Gabriella lay down next to Troy. Soon, Troy pushed himself on top of Gabriella, supporting himself with his lower arms. Gabriella let her hand thread around the back of Troy's neck, playing with his hair. Their kisses were slow and drawn out, their lips dancing with one another. As the kisses became quicker and shorter, Gabriella could feel Troy grinning against her. As a result she started to giggle. With one final quick peck, Troy finally spoke,

"Good morning," He leaned down again and met Gabriella's lips with another sensuous kiss. Gabriella happily kissed back, smiling into the kiss,

"Good morning to you as well," she mumbled.

"Let's just stay here," Troy suggested. Gabriella giggled,

"Your mother will be up soon," she pointed out.

"I don't care," Troy whispered before he leaned down to kiss the brunette yet again. Gabriella braced her hands against Troy's chest, pushing him up,

"You have to get up," Gabriella insisted.

Troy shook his head, kissing Gabriella's neck, "Naaaah," he mumbled into the hair that fell around her neck.

"I'm being serious Troy."

"So I am," Troy whispered. Gabriella sighed,

"Troy," she warned.

"Fine," Troy gave in, "Fine…"

* * *

Troy had offered to drive Gabriella home from school that day, he figured he could give her a bit of confidence to help her. She'd been nervous all day, he could sense that. The ride home from school was quiet. It wasn't awkward; it was a heavy silence, a sad silence. It was a stark contrast from the blissfully happy morning the two had shared. Troy kept glancing over at Gabriella, whose head was resting against the window.

"What are you thinking about?" Troy asked gently.

"Everything," Gabriella admitted, "I'm thinking about what I'm going to say to her, but nothing seems right."

With one hand grasping the steering wheel, Troy let his other hand rub soothing on Gabriella's thigh.

"There is no right or wrong thing to say Brie," Troy reminded her.

"But there is so much, I _want_ to say to her. What if I miss something out?"

"I think you'll have plenty of time to say everything you want to say," Troy assured her

"But what if-" Gabriella began to protest.

"Brie," Troy interrupted her, "I think you need to stop worrying. Stop planning out what you think is going to happen. Just go with the flow."

"I'm not so sure I'm a go with the flow type of girl, Troy," Gabriella countered.

"Sure you are" Troy shrugged.

Gabriella raised her eyebrow towards Troy as if to say, 'are you kidding'

Troy gave in, "So maybe you're not the most go with the flow type of girl, but that doesn't mean you can't be for just now,"

"I can't just switch it on" Gabriella's protested.

"Well Brie, you're going to have to, because we're here." Troy's car rolled to a stop just as he finished his reminder.

Gabriella sunk down in the seat and shot Troy a look, "You're not helping," she groaned.

Troy turned off the engine, and turned to look at Gabriella one again, "Gabriella," he began seriously, "you will be fine, I promise. Now come on, I'll walk you to the door." Troy pressed a quick kiss to Gabriella's check before he opened the door and hoped out of the truck. Gabriella sighed and soon followed suit.

It wasn't long before Gabriella and Troy were standing at the front door. Troy was standing just behind Gabriella, who was centered to the door. Gingerly, Gabriella reached out and rang the doorbell, listening to it as it echoed through the house.

Panicking, Gabriella turned around to try to leave, but she was quickly stopped by Troy's strong chest. Her delicate hands resting on his chest, she looked up at him with scared eyes as she tried to move him out of the way,

"Maybe we should go," Gabriella babbled nervously.

"_Maybe,_ we should stay," Troy said slowly, "You are going to be fine, I promise. Now take a deep breath and turn around."

Doing as Troy told her, Gabriella took a deep breath and took a look at Troy's comforting eyes one last time, before she turned to face the door.

Just as she turned around the door opened to reveal Mariana. While Mariana didn't look shocked, she did look a little bit surprised to see Gabriella standing at the door. There was a look of relief that washed over her face.

"Hi" Gabriella squeaked nervously. She was terrified that her grandmother wouldn't forgive her, that she had snapped too much at Mariana.

Mariana quickly engulfed her granddaughter in a warm hug,

"Aye mi cielo, te amo, te amo mucho" she whispered.

"I love you too abuelita," Gabriella whispered back.

"Come in, come in," Mariana said quickly after she broke the warm embrace.

Troy placed his hand on the small of Gabriella's back, just as she was about to enter the house. He knew she wasn't going to like what he was about to say, but she had to do this on her own.

"I actually have to run, my mom wanted me to pick some things up from the store for dinner," Troy explained. Gabriella looked back at Troy quickly with terror, confusion and a little bit of anger written all over her face.

Mariana nodded, "That's fine Troy. Say hello to your mother for me."

"I will," Troy assured her. By this time, Gabriella had turned around completely to face Troy. She looked up at him with panicked eyes. Troy supplied Gabriella with a comforting smile. He leaned over and whispered,

"You'll be fine, I promise. Just breathe. I love you." With a quick kiss pressed to Gabriella forehead, Troy walked back down the front steps and down the path. Gabriella watched him until he opened the door into his car and flashed one last comforting smile at Gabriella. Gabriella waved timidly as the car pulled out and drove away.

She turned around and stepped through the door. After she shut the door behind her, she quietly said,

"I'm sorry I yelled yesterday."

"It's alright mi amor, I realize this is going to be tough on you," Mariana said softly.

"How did Lucas and Lily take it?" Gabriella asked curiously.

"They were very quiet. I think they're a little confused on how to feel. You should talk to them when they get home from school," she suggested. Gabriella nodded her head and took a deep breath before she spoke again,

"Is she here?" she asked quietly.

"Yes," Mariana answered, "she's in the kitchen."

She took another deep breath,

"Can I talk to her?"

Mariana was slightly taken aback with Gabriella's bluntness, nevertheless she was happy to see her granddaughter willing to work things out "Of course. Why don't you go sit in the living room and I'll go get her."

Gabriella nodded and darted into the living room while her grandmother went into the kitchen. There were three chairs in the living room; one three-seater couch and two one-seater comfy chairs. The three chairs surrounded a wooden coffee table – the large couch sat parallel to the long side of the rectangular coffee table, while each chair sat on the short sides of the table, facing each other. Gabriella decided to take a seat on the large couch. She sat on the left side, with her feet resting firmly on the floor.

She could hear the sound of stilettos coming into the living room. Maria entered the room cautiously and sat down on the chair adjacent to the couch Gabriella was sitting on.

The pair sat in silence for a few moments before they both spoke,

"I-" They both looked embarrassed that they'd spoken at the same time and tried again,

"You go" the pair offered in unison. Looking embarrassed, Gabriella averted her eyes. She could feel the awkwardness building in the room.

Maria watched her daughter carefully, she looked slightly terrified, a little ashamed and very stressed.

"Gabriella," Maria said softly. Gabriella looked up at her mother as Maria continued to speak, "I really am, so, so sorry." She reached out her hand to touch Gabriella's but Gabriella pulled her hand away and looked up at her mother sadly,

"I can't just jump back into things. I can't forget what happened or the pain it caused me," Gabriella spoke slowly, "I want things to be different. I want to be able to say I forgive you and then run into your open arms." She could feel the tears forming in her eyes, but fought hard to keep them at bay. "And one day hopefully I'll be able to do that," she smiled weakly, "But right now, I just need time.

Maria nodded, "I can do that."

"And I'm sorry about yesterday. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that. I was just…" Gabriella couldn't seem to find the right word, "It was just a lot for me," she admitted.

Maria studied her daughter carefully. They shared the same soft brown eyes and the same dark waves. She couldn't help but marvel at her daughter's beauty and maturity. The last time she'd seen her daughter, Gabriella had still been running around barefoot and giggling, with colorful clips and ribbons adorning her hair. Now, Gabriella's soft waves framed her face and her intelligent eyes looked anxiously at Maria.

"Don't worry about it. It's understandable. In fact, I probably should have expected that. It's a lot to deal with. I get that now. Yesterday I guess wasn't really thinking straight. In all honesty, I probably should have handled it better, instead of showing up at the door unannounced," Maria admitted.

Gabriella couldn't help but smile discreetly. This was going better than she'd thought it would.

"Maybe we could just start over, like two people who've just met," Gabriella suggested hopefully. She wanted to get to know her mother, she really did. She just wasn't ready to forgive her for all the pain she'd caused.

"I think that's a good idea," Maria smiled.

Gabriella stood up and held out her hand, "Gabriella Montez."

Maria met Gabriella's hand and shook it softly, but firmly, "Maria Ortiz, it's a pleasure to meet you."

* * *

**A/N: I know the conversation was short between Gabriella and Maria, but this certainly isn't the end of their relationship. Things are just getting started. Thank you again for sticking by me. Let me know what you thought!**


	7. As Far as the Siblings are Concerned

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters. **

**A/N: **IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE****

**Hey Everyone! So I actually uploaded a chapter last weekend, but most of you probably didn't know because I just replaced the content of the author's note with chapter, which unfortunately meant you didn't get an alert. SO, if you haven't read the last chapter GO READ IT NOW!**

**Now, if you've read chapter 6, then enjoy chapter 7 :D**

* * *

Chapter Seven – As Far as the Siblings are Concerned

Later that afternoon, Gabriella sat on her bed working on her homework. The short chat with her mother had gone well, better than she had expected. She felt a lot better about the whole situation. Maybe this would work out after all. They could start over and maybe one day her mother would be the one she called when she needed advice. She sighed, that still seemed like a long way off.

Just then, there was a timid knock at her door.

"Come in" she called, looking up to see who was at her door. The door opened and in walked Lucas and Lily. Gabriella quickly shut her math textbook and rushed over to her brother and sister, hugging them tightly.

"I'm sorry" she murmured.

"We're just confused, Gabi" Lucas admitted.

"Come on, let's go sit on my bed and talk," Gabriella suggested. When the three siblings were situated on Gabriella's bed, Gabriella decided she'd better speak first.

"What are you guys thinking?" she asked carefully, "About everything that's happening?"

Lily sighed, "We don't know how to feel."

"Should we be happy that she's back? Or should we be angry that she left?" Lucas continued.

"Can we trust her?" Lily added.

Gabriella was slightly taken aback. Her siblings had the same feelings she had? She was so relived though, she wasn't the only one feeling this confusion!

"We know you'll know what do Gabi, you always know what to do," Lucas stated confidently.

And that's when Gabriella's heart broke a little bit. Yes, her siblings shared her same feelings, but they were looking to _her_ for answers. For answers that she didn't have. She placed a comforting hand on one of each siblings' hand.

"The truth is guys, there are no answers. We have to follow our gut. We have to think about what feels right for us. It's ok if you feel happy and angry at the same time. You're allowed to take time to figure out which one you feel more," Gabriella explained carefully. She wasn't sure where this was all coming from, but it was the best she had right now.

"But Gabi, what are _you_ going to do? We don't want to upset you by making the wrong choice," Lily protested. Both siblings looked torn. It was as if they knew Gabriella was really upset by their mother being back, but they were happy that she was back. Was she swaying their opinions? That didn't seem right.

"I'm going to be honest with you guys, because I think you deserve it. This _is _really difficult for me. I'm just as confused as you are. But I need you to listen to me very carefully. Just because this is hard on me, does not mean that it has to be hard on you. If you're happy that you have your mom back, that's great. Feel that, embrace that. Don't worry about what I feel, or how I'm coping. You won't upset me," Gabriella spoke honestly.

"You're not going to leave us are you?" Lily asked nervously.

"Of course not, you guys are stuck with me forever. You mean the world to me," Gabriella said softly, bringing her brother and sister into a tight hug. She squeezed her eyes shut as she hugged her brother and sister. She knew they ready to have a mother in their life again and she didn't want to be the one who prevented Lucas and Lily from having a mother. Even if that meant suppressing her own feelings of doubt and lack of trust.

* * *

The next afternoon Gabriella stood behind the cash register.

"Have a good afternoon," she said politely as she handed the customer her change.

It had been a quiet afternoon at Borders, only a few people in the store and even less who actually bought books. Gabriella was thankfully for that. She was exhausted - with everything that was going on, she hadn't really gotten a ton of sleep.

"Finished stacking all the books!" Owen exclaimed enthusiastically as he made his way behind the cash register.

"I'm so proud," Gabriella muttered sarcastically.

"Well isn't someone miss happy today?" Owen fired back equally sarcastic.

Gabriella shot him a look, "Excuse me for being tired."

"We're all tired, it's the school year," Owen reminded her. Gabriella rolled her eyes.

"Dude!" Own suddenly exclaimed, "I just remembered, the craziest thing happened a few days ago!"

"What happened?" she asked. This had actually peaked her interest, nothing exciting ever happened in a book store.

"This woman comes running in here, looking really flustered and she was like 'is Gabriella here?' And I said no, because you'd just left. Then, she was like, 'do you know where she is?' At this point I was thinking this woman is crazy, but I said you went home, but I definitely couldn't give out your address because that would be really creepy, right?" Owen explained, hand gestures and all.

"What did she look like?" Gabriella asked tentatively.

"She had dark hair, kinda curly. She was wearing a business suit," Owen described, "She looked like she was on a mission, but a super creepy mission" he added.

Gabriella stared blankly at Owen. Her mother had come back to the store? So she _had_ recognized her. She _had_ remembered. That made Gabriella feel better, a lot better. It made her feel less forgotten, less unwanted, more loved.

Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by Owen's hand waving in front of her face.

"Helloooo? Earth to Montez."

Gabriella quickly snapped out of her thought trance, "Hey, sorry."

"Don't worry _too _much, she didn't look like _that_ much of a stalker," Owen teased.

Gabriella stared at him blankly, again.

Owen's eyebrows furrowed. What was going on with this girl? Usually Gabriella had some witty remark. Right now, she had nothing. Something was certainly up.

"Wait a second…" Owen began, "you know this woman."

"Of course I don't" Gabriella lied, unsuccessfully. She turned her head away from Owen in hopes that he wouldn't see her untruthful eyes. Her efforts were unsuccessful – the tone of her voice gave her away. Owen quickly made his way to the other side of the counter, so he could look Gabriella in the eye.

"Don't lie to me Montez. You owe me," Owen reminded her.

"What are you talking about? I don't owe you," Gabriella defended.

"Oh yes you do," Owen countered, "from that time_ I _cleaned up the puke because _someone_ can't stand the smell."

Gabriella frowned as she recalled the small boy who had thrown up in the back of the store. As the two youngest employees Owen and Gabriella had been given the task of cleaning up the vomit. Gabriella remembered the horrible smell that had filled her nostrils as she had approached the scene and how it had made her want to throw up as well. She recalled how Owen had graciously agreed to clean up the vomit, as Gabriella's face turned greener and greener.

She did owe him. Curse that small boy.

She sighed and gave in, "That was my mother."

With that, she turned her back to Owen and started pulling paperwork to organize the receipts.

"Oh no you don't. You're not getting off _that_ easy Montez. What the hell do you mean, your mother? That doesn't make any sense," Owen retorted.

Gabriella snapped her head around, "It's complicated Owen. I don't want to talk about it," she said quickly.

"What? Is there some melodramatic hatred between you two. You can't bear to be in the same room as her and she is always searching for your forgiveness," he mocked. "Why do girls always seem to hate their mothers?" he muttered.

That pushed Gabriella over the edge. How dare he assume he knew everything about her life?

"She walked out on us," Gabriella snapped angrily, "She thought her career was more important than her family, so she left us and now she's back." She turned away from a shocked, and slightly embarrassed Owen.

Owen slowly made his way back around the counter and placed a comforting hand on Gabriella's shoulder,

"Gabriella, I didn't know. I'm sorry," he apologized softly.

"It's alright, I'd rather not bring it up again," Gabriella said quietly.

"If I can say one last thing?" Owen requested. When Gabriella didn't object, he leaned closer and whispered, "I say you punch her in the face. She deserves it."

Gabriella couldn't help but laugh. Deep down inside that's exactly what she wanted to do.

"Tempting, eh?" Owen chuckled.

Gabriella nodded, still laughing, "Very," she admitted. Owen grinned proudly.

Just then the two heard the store door open. The two turned around and saw Troy enter the store.

"Ready to go Brie?" he asked, making his way over to the counter.

Gabriella smiled, "Yeah, let me just run and get my bag, it's in the back." She quickly darted off, leaving Troy and Owen standing there, awkwardly.

Unable to stand the awkward silence that had fallen over them, Troy stuck out his hand, "Troy Bolton, I'm Gabriella's boyfriend," he introduced.

"Owen Reynolds, I work here as well," Owen introduced, shaking Troy's hand. Troy's grip was firm as the teenagers shook hands, as if he was sizing Owen up (which he was). When the released hands, Troy spoke again,

"You don't go to East High, do you? I don't think I recognize you."

"Nah, I go to West High," Owen answered casually. "Go knights," he joked, pumping his fist.

Troy smiled, but only to be polite. Gabriella soon appeared with her bag in hand, ready to go. She walked over to Troy and interlocked her hand with his, "All set."

"Great, let's go," Troy smiled.

"See you later Owen," Gabriella waved.

"See you Montez. Nice to meet you Troy," Owen waved back.

"You as well Owen." Troy held his hand up as a way of saying goodbye.

Troy and Gabriella turned to leave the store. As they were walking towards the door Troy placed a kiss on Gabriella's head and then turned to glace back at Owen before he pushed open the door for Gabriella.

'_West High. Interesting.' _He thought.

After a short drive back to Troy's house, Troy and Gabriella were walking up Troy's front path to his house. The Boltons had invited the Montez family over for dinner. It would be the first time Maria would meet the family, who had been so kind to Gabriella and her family. More importantly, it would be the first time Troy met the woman who broke Gabriella's heart. Troy opened the door and called out to his family,

"We're here!"

"We're in the dining room," his mother called back.

"Perfect timing," Troy whispered to Gabriella, "looks like dinner is just about to be served."

Gabriella smiled, thankful she wouldn't have to engage in any small talk in the kitchen while Lucille finished up the preparations for dinner.

When Troy and Gabriella entered the dining room, Lucille was the first to greet the couple,

"Oh Gabriella, it's lovely to see you again," she gushed, embracing Gabriella in a warm hug. While everyone else smiled and waved as a greeting, Maria stood up from the table to meet Troy.

Gabriella gestured to her mother, "Troy this is my mother," then she gestured to Troy, "and Maria, this is my boyfriend, Troy."

Maria quickly held out her hand to shake Troy's, "It's lovely to meet you Troy."

"You as well," Troy smiled politely. Maria smiled as well as she shook the hand of the boy, who she knew was Gabriella's biggest fan. The boy she knew she needed to gain the trust of, in order to gain the trust of Gabriella.

"Well, let's not let the dinner get cold. Everyone sit down and get started," Lucille grinned.

* * *

After the Boltons and Montezes had been well fed, Troy and Gabriella had been assigned dish duty, while the rest of the families retired to the family room to sit and chat. Troy and Gabriella didn't mind dish duty so much, they were together, so it didn't matter to them what they were doing.

Gabriella washed the dirty dishes with warm soapy water, while Troy dried the dishes and put them away.

"So what do you think of my mother, now that you've met her?" Gabriella asked curiously.

"She seems alright, she did seem to talk a lot about her work. And she wanted to know what my parents did," Troy shrugged, "Although I noticed you don't call her mom," Troy pointed out.

"Do I sense a question there?" Gabriella replied.

"You most certainly do."

Gabriella sighed, "I don't know. I don't feel right calling her mom. She doesn't _feel_ like my mother yet. When she does, then I'll call her mom, no problem. But for now, I can't," Gabriella explained. "Does that make sense?" she added, looking worriedly up at Troy.

"That makes perfect sense," Troy assured her. "How are you two getting on?"

Gabriella shrugged, "We're trying. Sometimes it's kind of awkward because we have nothing to talk about, but we can usually hold a civil conversation. We're getting there."

"And Lucas and Lily?" Troy probed.

"They seem alright. At first, I think they were confused, mostly because of me though. They didn't want to upset me by making the wrong choice. But I assured them that however they cope with the whole mom being back thing, it won't upset me. They seem to be getting on better than I am. They're more open," Gabriella explained.

"And are you ok with that?" Troy asked.

"Of course I am," Gabriella answered quickly.

"Ah that's very much a Gabriella move," Troy stated.

"What do you mean?" Gabriella asked, confused.

"Well, you somehow always manage to put Lucas and Lily ahead of yourself," Troy pointed out.

"Of course I do, they're my younger brother and sister. Do you think there is something wrong with that?" Gabriella demanded putting her sponge down to face Troy.

"Of course not," Troy answered, placing his dish towel over this shoulder as he turned to Gabriella, "What I want to make sure of, is that _you_ are really and truly ok with the fact that your brother and sister are having a much easier time with this than you are," Troy explained, studying Gabriella's expression carefully.

Gabriella looked away shyly, "It's not fair you know me too well," she murmured.

Troy smiled softly, "You want to talk about it?"

"I want Lucas and Lily to be happy, I really do. You know that. But part of me, is jealous that they're adjusting so much easier. Why is it so hard for me to forgive her? How come I still feel this anger inside of me? How have they forgotten the pain? How have they taken the first steps in forgiving her and why can't I do the same?" Gabriella sighed.

"They weren't as old as you when she left. They probably don't remember what she was like before she left," Troy pointed out, "The wounds of her leaving aren't as freshly implanted in their memories. Whereas the memory you have of you mother leaving will forever stay with you."

Gabriella nodded, Troy did make a good point. That didn't make it any easier, but she knew he was right.

Troy studied Gabriella as she continued to wash the dishes in the short silence that had fallen over the two. There was still something else though, something else that was bothering her. Troy could feel it. What was it though?

"What else is bothering you, Brie?" Troy asked gently.

Gabriella didn't even bother to try to lie to Troy, she knew he could see right through her. She shook her head, "It's stupid."

"I'm sure it's not stupid. You can tell me," Troy assured her.

Gabriella looked up at him guiltily, "What if they don't need me anymore?"

There was the real root of the problem. Yes, Gabriella was bothered that Lucas and Lily were adjusting better, but she was also terrified by the fact that with a new mother figure in their lives, their need for Gabriella would disappear.

Troy placed his hand on Gabriella's and locked his blue orbs with her brown ones.

"Your brother and sister love you very very much Gabriella. Anybody can see that. No one, not even their own mother, will ever replace you. They're not going to forget all you've done for them. There is never going to come a time when they won't want to spend time with you Brie, I promise you. Don't you worry yourself about that. You've been the best big sister anyone could ask for, and Lucas and Lily are well aware of that." Troy's voice was kind, but firm. Gabriella knew he really believed the words that were spilling out of his mouth and they made her feel a lot better.

She went up on her tip toes to give Troy a kiss on the lips, "I love you," she murmured.

"I love you as well Brie," Troy whispered, kissing her softly back.

* * *

**A/N: So….what did you guys think? Yay Nay? Let me know with a lovely review! Thanks for reading!**


	8. Singing?

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters. **

**A/N: So it's looking like I'm going to be updating on Mondays. Hopefully that's alright with everyone! Thank you so much for all your reviews! I love hearing from you guys! Enjoy…**

* * *

Chapter Eight – Singing?

The school was buzzing with excitement. Tonight was the Wildcat's first official game of the season. Everyone was excited to kick off the season with a win, or at least that was what they hoped.

Gabriella was happy to be wearing Troy's jersey again. It had been a long time since she'd worn it on a game day. As silly as it sounded, she had missed wearing the jersey. There was nothing like being surrounded by Troy's scent for the entire day. She felt safe and protected, warm and loved. It had quickly become her favorite thing to wear.

It was lunchtime so the excitement had reached its highest level of the day. Students were deciding who they were going with, where and when they were going to meet and how much red they were going to wear. Among the happy chatter that filled the cafeteria, Sharpay came strolling up to the gang's usual table quite happily. Taylor glanced over at her radiant friend and was immediately curious. Yes Sharpay was a pretty bubbly person, but Sharpay seemed almost giddy about something.

"You seem very happy," Taylor observed as more a question than a statement.

"Oh I am," Sharpay grinned. She clearly hadn't gotten the hint that Taylor wanted to know _why _she was so happy.

"Care to share?" Taylor probed. By this time, the whole table had noticed Sharpay's giddiness.

"Well," Sharpay began excitedly, clasping her hands together, "I just had _the _best idea and I've put it into action." She was beaming with pleasure.

"And the idea is…" Zeke coaxed as the whole gang leaned in closer.

"Well you know how I'm in charge, well partially in charge – Ms. Darbus is helping as well - of the talent show?"

"Yes…" the gang said slowly, waiting anxiously to hear Sharpay's genius idea.

"You see, we were a teeny tiny bit short on acts - I mean there are only so many talented people in this school and I certainly wasn't going to allow just anyone into the show, he or she must have some talent worthy of being in the same show as moi" the blonde rambled proudly.

"Shar, we get it, you're the greatest, can you please finish the story," Chad interrupted a hint of sarcasm in his tone.

"Anyway," Sharpay sent a disapproving look toward Chad for interrupting her, "I came up with the perfect person to fill in the final slot," she beamed happily.

"Who's the person?" Gabriella asked curiously.

"You!" Sharpay exclaimed.

Gabriella nearly choked on the water she was drinking, "Excuse me?" she squeaked.

"You heard me. You, Gabriella Montez, are going to be singing in the talent show! Isn't that exciting! You'll get to sing in front of the whole school and all the parents and everyone will finally hear that marvelous voice you've been keeping all to yourself! It'll be fantastic!" Sharpay explained ecstatically.

Gabriella didn't hear a word Sharpay said after 'You, Gabriella Montez, are going to be singing in the talent show!' She was pretty sure she was going to be sick. Gabriella Montez singing? In front of people? Sharpay was kidding. Right? There was no way she was going to be able to sing in front of an audience of people without forgetting her words or tripping or worse, fainting. She'd never, ever, sang in front of anyone. And to be honest, she hadn't considered that she would ever sing in front of people in her lifetime.

"Isn't it wonderful Gabi?" Sharpay turned to Gabriella smiling.

Gabriella's mouth was open in shock, she tried to say something, to scream no, but no words would come out of her mouth.

"Look! You're speechless!" Sharpay exclaimed.

It only took one look at Gabriella's pale face for Troy to realize that Gabriella was not at all happy about Sharpay's announcement. He should probably say something.

"Uh Sharpay," he started nervously. Telling Sharpay her 'genius idea' was actually not such a good idea was not going to go over easy. "I don't think Gabriella is as comfortable singing on stage as you are," he explained gently.

"Oh it'll be fine, you can practice with Kelsi. She'll help you," Sharpay assured Gabriella.

By now, Gabriella had found her voice, "Shar, I really appreciate your idea, but I just…it's just…I've never sang on stage all alone. The last time I sang in front of more than one person was when I was like 9 and that was in the church choir. Honestly, I don't think it's a good idea. I mean I get nervous giving a little presentation to a class, forget singing alone on stage," Gabriella babbled nervously.

Sharpay looked very serious for a few seconds. Gabriella hoped that that meant she was going to give in and Gabriella wouldn't have to sing in the show.

That wasn't the case however, Gabriella realized when she saw Sharpay's eyes light up,

"Troy will sing with you!"

This time it was Troy's turn to choke on his water.

"I don't think so," Troy said quickly.

"Why not?" Sharpay asked innocently, "Gabriella can sing, Troy can sing, Gabriella has never been on stage alone, Troy plays basketball in front of hundreds of people, Troy can provide Gabriella with the comfort she needs on stage," Sharpay explained as if it was simple logic. "And besides, can't you just imagine the song they could sing? It would be so romantic," Sharpay sighed happily.

"Sharpay, we're not singing in the talent show. Brie's not comfortable with it, I'm not comfortable with it. It's not happening," Troy told her matter of factly.

"It's one show, one song!" Sharpay cried incredulously holding one finger.

"We don't have time to practice. Brie has her scholastic decathlon stuff and basketball season is just starting. I'm swamped," Troy tried to convince her. He figured if the fact that they didn't _want_ to wouldn't convince her perhaps the fact that they _couldn't _would.

"Time is not really an issue. You guys could come to my house for breakfast and on weekends to practice," Kelsi chimed in. Troy and Gabriella, and the rest of the gang for that matter, were shocked to hear Kelsi side with Sharpay. Usually, the small brown haired girl was all for people doing things that they wanted to, not what other people wanted them to do.

"Kels?" Gabriella squeaked, surprisingly.

"What Sharpay has neglected to tell you is that, whether you want to or not, you guys are roped into the talent show next month," Kelsi explained.

Troy turned back to Sharpay with a demanding look on his face.

"It's true. I just hoped you guys would take to the idea more easily. I told Darbus that you guys would sing in the talent show. Obviously I knew Gabriella wouldn't sing on her own, but I hoped that Troy would jump to the rescue to offer to sing with her," Sharpay explained, smiling hopefully at the gang.

"Can't you just tell Darbus they don't want to do it?" Taylor suggested.

Sharpay, Ryan and Kelsi all started to laugh. The rest of the gang stared, very confused, at the three. Since when was this funny?

"Once the final list goes in to Darbus, it's final. No changes. No exceptions," Ryan said, clearing up their confusion.

"Except hospitalization," Sharpay added.

Troy rubbed his temples. This was not happening.

Kelsi placed a compassionate hand on Gabriella, in an attempt to ease her anxiety, "I promise the whole singing on stage thing won't be that bad," she assured her kindly.

"And you'll help us Kelsi?" Troy asked, "Because I don't know the first thing about performing on stage."

"Of course, I already have the perfect song for you two," she smiled.

* * *

"You're coming to the basketball game tonight, right mom?" Lucas asked excitedly as the Montez family started to clear the dinner table.

Maria sighed, "I don't know guys, I have a lot of work to get done tonight."

"Pleeaase," Lily pleaded, "The games are so much fun! I promise!"

"It's true! There's food and the mascot and cheering and singing! And the Wildcats are so good, even if you don't like basketball you'll still have a good time," Lucas continued, trying to convince her.

"I suppose it is Friday and it could be fun," Maria gave in.

Lucas and Lily grinned happily, "Yaaaay!" they chimed.

"We're leaving as soon as we clean up," Gabriella reminded them. The twins nodded, and then ran off, anxious to get ready to leave.

Half an hour later, Mariana, Maria, Gabriella, Lucas and Lily walked into the very loud East High gym. The band was playing music to get the crowd pumped up, the fans were all chatting loudly and the commentators were giving away raffle prizes already. Since it was the first game of the season, parents and students alike were all filling the seats of the gym. Gabriella soon spotted the gang and their families seated on the other side of the gym.

Soon, Gabriella was sitting in between Lily and Kelsi. Lucas was sitting next to Lily, and Sharpay and Taylor were on the other side of Kelsi. Maria sat directly in front of Gabriella next to Mariana and Lucille.

"So I was thinking we could start rehearsing tomorrow morning at my house," Kelsi suggested.

"That sounds fine for me Kels, I don't know about Troy though," Gabriella answered.

"I'll alright, I already checked with Troy, he said it was fine," Kelsi replied. Gabriella nodded.

"What are you guys rehearsing?" Lily interjected curiously.

"Troy and I are singing in the talent show," Gabriella stated shyly.

Lucille whorled around, "My Troy?" she questioned.

Gabriella nodded, "Yep, Sharpay signed us up unbeknownst to us."

Lucille grinned, "That's wonderful! Troy has such a wonderful voice," she proclaimed, "Although you wouldn't know it because he only sings when he thinks he's alone," she added, smiling proudly.

"Gabriella has a beautiful voice as well," Maria added, "She used to sing in the church choir. The choir teacher always wanted her to do solos, but Gabriella was always too afraid," she chuckled a little bit. Gabriella smiled. It was nice to see her mother could recall the same small details she could from her childhood.

"When is the show?" Mariana asked.

"Thursday, October 23rd at 7pm. Tickets are $2 for students and kids and $5 for adults," Sharpay advertized proudly.

"That's the day before my art show!" Lily reminded them.

"Don't worry, we'll still all go to your show Lily," Maria assured her daughter. Lily smiled happily.

"Well then it's settled, we'll all go to the talent show on Thursday and Lily's art show on Friday," Lucille declared cheerfully.

* * *

That Monday evening, Troy sat in the auditorium watching Gabriella's first scholastic decathlon competition. Half the time he honestly didn't know what was happening or what they were talking about. He knew that the first one to first the problem correctly got the point and whichever team had the most points at the end of the night, won. His problem was he didn't know how to even begin to solve some of the problems. He came to support Gabriella though, after all she did come to almost all of his games. This was the least he could do. And besides he loved the way her face scrunched up when she was trying to solve a problem.

The competition was about half way through and Gabriella had already looked back at Troy at least 20 times. Troy smiled at her every time and she would smile back, but Troy knew she was also looking back at the empty seat next to him that her mother had promised to fill. He could see disappointment flood Gabriella face every time she saw the empty seat.

Just then he heard a quiet shuffling of feet and suddenly Gabriella's mother sat down in the seat next to him, looking very flustered.

"Sorry I'm late, the traffic coming from work was horrendous," she exasperated.

"It's alright," Troy told her politely, "You didn't miss too much."

"Oh good, I didn't want to disappoint Gabriella," Maria whispered.

Troy nodded, and turned his attention back to Gabriella. She hadn't noticed her mother just yet, but he hoped she would soon. He knew she'd be happy to see her mother had made the effort to be here. She'd confessed to him in one of the late night talks that she was worried she might choose her career over her children again.

Maria Ortiz was definitely what Troy would describe as a career woman. Almost every time he saw her she was wearing a business suit and heels. Her blackberry was always in her hand and even though Maria did ignore it, Troy could always hear it buzzing. Maria was making an effort to put her children before work, Troy had noticed that. She had been to Lucas' basketball game on Saturday, she'd been playing board games with Lucas and Lily when he'd stopped by to see Gabriella on Sunday. She was trying and Troy appreciated that.

Gabriella was trying as well and Troy was proud of her for that. He knew she still struggled with trusting her mother, but Gabriella was attempting to get to know her mother again. He knew it was getting easier for Gabriella; that she and her mother were talking about politics and school. They weren't as close as Gabriella and her grandmother - that was for sure. He doubted that they ever would be, but for now this was good.

It was then that Gabriella looked back at Troy again; she smiled brighter when she saw her mother sitting next to Troy. Maria gave her daughter a wave and Gabriella's smile grew even brighter. Troy grinned, he was happy to see the disappointment disappear from Gabriella's face.

Maria leaned closer to Troy, "You know, she gets all her brains from her father. She's a lot like him," she murmured. Troy feigned a smile, only so Maria wouldn't grow suspicious.

If Maria ever said that to Gabriella, he was sure that would hurt her, a lot. He still didn't understand why Gabriella hadn't said anything about her father and what had happened, but Troy knew it wasn't his place to say anything. Even more puzzling though was why Maria hadn't asked where Tomas was.

* * *

**A/N: Ok ok, I know it was kind of a filler chapter, but I promise the next chapters have got some serious drama going down. It's going to get intense, so hang on!**

**I need your help though! Troy and Gabriella are singing together in talent show, but the big question is what song should they sing? I want to hear from you guys! What do you think? Let me know in a review! Thanks guys!**


	9. She'll Be Here, Right?

Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters.

**A/N: Hey guys! So I'm not going to lie, I actually forgot that Monday rolled around. I thought it was Sunday….yeah…my brain fails in the summer. Anyway enjoy…**

* * *

Chapter Nine – She'll Be Here, Right?

Over the past month, things in the Montez house had changed. Lily and Lucas were enamored with their mother. They were thrilled to have her at home and loved the idea that they had a mom again. Gabriella had slowly warmed up to her mother. Instead of only discussing the latest headlines, Gabriella was open to sharing more personal tales with her mother. Often Mariana, Maria and Gabriella would sit in the evenings and discuss their personal lives. Gabriella had grown to start to trust her mother, to believe that she was here to stay.

Gabriella tried to push aside the fact that sometimes, more often in the past few weeks, Maria missed dinner or had to take a call during dinner because of work. Gabriella worked hard to ignore those small inconveniences. She wanted this to work, she wanted to love her mother again, she wanted to salvage their relationship. Maybe for the time being she could let the occasional work issue plague their dinner table.

* * *

Gabriella stood nervously in her dressing room. She could hear the chatter of the audience. She knew it was a full house; Sharpay had come running in to tell her the "good" news. She couldn't believe this was actually happening, that she was actually about to go on stage and sing to a room full of strangers. Well, almost all strangers. She knew her grandmother, her mother, Lucas and Lily were sitting in the auditorium ready to cheer her own. She also knew she had the support of Troy's parents, which was always nice.

Staring at herself in the mirror, she took a deep breath. Her natural curls were pinned up in a half ponytail and her eyes shimmered with pearl colored eye-shadow and a dark silver crease. She wore a simple white dress with black flower detailing lining the top and bottom edges of the dress. A pair of black heels completed the look. Self-consciously, she brushed her fingers through the hair that was loose from her half pony-tail, trying to make sure it wasn't knotted.

Gabriella didn't notice the teenage boy who had appeared at the door in dark wash jeans, a white shirt and a skinny black tie. He smiled as he leaned up against the doorframe watching Gabriella, very amused.

"You look amazing," he commented finally, sensing her anxiety.

Gabriella whorled around to find her boyfriend with a smile on his face, making his way towards her.

"Thank you, you look very handsome as well," she smiled, kissing his cheek as a greeting.

"How you holding up?" he asked.

"I feel like I'm going to be sick," she answered.

"It's going to be fine," Troy assured her.

"That's easy for you to say, Mr. I can shoot a free throw perfectly with a thousand people watching," Gabriella said sarcastically.

"Hey, hey, that doesn't mean that I'm not nervous as well," Troy reminded her.

"Are you?" Gabriella questioned.

"Of course I am. I'm pretty sure I feel like I'm going to be sick, just as much as you do," Troy answered honestly.

"So what are you planning on doing about it?" Gabriella wondered aloud.

Troy scratched the back of his neck, "Well…I'm actually just kind of hoping that it goes away once I get on stage," he shrugged.

Gabriella let her head fall back and groaned, "That doesn't help."

Troy studied Gabriella's face carefully, he could see the terror strung across her face. She wasn't used to performing in front of people. He'd have to say something a little more helpful.

"Ok how about this, just don't look out into the audience. Pretend it's just you and me in Kelsi's living room practicing. Just look at me, right at me and everything will be alright." He was close to her now, his face just inches from her face. "I promise," he whispered before her placed a kiss on her forehead.

Gabriella smiled, snuggling close to Troy's warm chest.

"Just promise me one thing?" Troy requested. Moving slightly away, Gabriella looked up at her boyfriend, "Sure, anything"

"If you feel like you're going to be sick, aim _away_ from me," Troy said seriously.

"Troy!" Gabriella gasped, whacking her hand against his arm, "Don't say that!"

Troy held up his hands in defense, "I was kidding! Kidding!," he laughed.

Gabriella rolled her eyes.

Just then, Ms. Darbus came to the door, "Bolton. Montez. You're on in 5 minutes," she ordered sharply, before disappearing around the corner.

"Looks like it's show time." Troy took Gabriella's hand and led her up the stairs to the wings on the stage. As Zack Addy finished playing Mozart on the grand piano, Troy wrapped his arms around Gabriella from the back, kissing her sweet smelling hair.

Gabriella felt safe in his arms, she was ready, she could do this. When the lights darkened, Gabriella squeezed Troy's hand one last time as they parted ways. Gabriella took her place on stage right, while Troy took his place on stage left.

Kelsi was already sitting at the piano and Monica, a friend of Kelsi's, was sitting near Kelsi with a guitar – they had decided to go for a more acoustic version, with only the piano and the guitar.

As Kelsi and Monica began to play the opening notes of the song, the lights came on again, leaving the stage in a soft glow.

Troy started the song off, singing the opening lines as he walked slowly towards the middle of the stage.

_I remember what you wore on the first day  
You came into my life and I thought  
"Hey, you know, this could be something"_

Gabriella look a deep breath, locked her eyes on Troy's and started to sing, as she as well began to make her way to the middle of the stage.

_'Cause everything you do and words you say  
You know that it all takes my breath away  
And now I'm left with nothing_

The two were only a few feet away from one another when their voices joined together in harmony to sing the chorus. They didn't look anywhere else but into each other's eyes.

_So maybe it's true  
That I can't live without you  
Maybe two is better than one  
There's so much time  
To figure out the rest of my life  
And you've already got me coming undone  
And I'm thinking two is better than one_

Gabriella sang alone again as the melody picked up a little bit. She was gaining confidence as she sang each word,_  
_  
_I remember every look upon your face_

Then Troy sang his part and at the last line Gabriella's soft voice joined in.

_The way you roll your eyes  
The way you taste  
You make it hard for breathing_

This was Gabriella's favorite part of the song, it described exactly how she felt whenever she was away from Troy. She gently closed her eyes to sing the part that meant so much to her.

_'Cause when I close my eyes and drift away  
I think of you and everything's okay  
I'm finally now believing_

When Troy joined in to sing the chorus, Gabriella crossed in front of Troy and began to walk towards the back left corner of the stage, while Troy walked to the right, never taking his eyes off of the stunning brunette. _  
_  
_That maybe it's true  
That I can't live without you  
Maybe two is better than one  
There's so much time  
To figure out the rest of my life  
And you've already got me coming undone  
And I'm thinking two is better than one_

At the end of the chorus the melody picked up, and Kelsi played the piano more passionately for a few moments. Then, all of a sudden the piano softened as Troy sang the next few lines, raising his hand to point at Gabriella. _  
_  
_I remember what you wore on the first day  
You came into my life and I thought, "Hey,"_

The melody picked up again , so Troy and Gabriella were singing louder and more passionately. They were walking towards one another._  
_  
_Maybe it's true  
That I can't live without you  
Maybe two is better than one  
There's so much time  
To figure out the rest of my life  
And you've already got me coming undone  
_

They crossed paths one last time and Gabriella turned over her shoulder to sing to Troy, before she turned back to face him.

_And I'm thinking  
I can't live without you  
'Cause, baby, two is better than one  
There's so much time  
To figure out the rest of my life  
But I'll figure it out  
When all is said and done  
Two is better than one_

Finally, as the melody slowed and the music softened, Troy and Gabriella were only inches apart. They sang the last line softly, but beautifully, meaning every last word.

_Two is better than one_

The crowd burst into cheers and applause. Gabriella grinned and for the first time she looked out into the blackness that she knew was the audience. She could feel Troy's hand interlock with hers before they bowed together. They both held their hands out to thank Kelsi and Monica, before the lights went black again and they ran off stage.

"Troy!" Gabriella squealed, "That was fantastic! I can't believe we just did that!"

Troy grinned, "You were amazing out there, Brie. Absolutely amazing."

"So were you!" Gabriella exclaimed.

"Sssssshhhh!"scolded the stage manager.

Gabriella giggled silently, embarrassed, as Troy pulled her off the stage and into the hallway. He pushed her, gently of course, up again the wall and kissed her, running his hands around the small of her back to pull her closer. Gabriella ran her fingers through the back of Troy's hair, deepening the kiss.

"Is it crazy that I want to do that again?" Gabriella mumbled, when she broke away from the kiss.

Troy shook his head, "Not when I completely agree with you." Their lips met again in another celebratory kiss.

* * *

After the show had finished, Troy and Gabriella walked hand in hand to see all their friends and family who had been watching the show.

Lucille was the first one they spotted in the sea of parents and students. She quickly pulled Gabriella into a hug,

"Oh Gabriella! You look gorgeous! You were fantastic!" she gushed.

Jack Bolton, embraced his son, "Great job Troy."

Lucas and Lily were next to run up to the pair, "Gabi! I didn't know you could sing _that_ well!" Lily exclaimed.

"Yeah! You guys should try out for American Idol!" Lucas suggested enthusiastically.

"Let's not get too carried away," Troy chuckled.

Mariana was next to approach Troy and Gabriella. She took Gabriella's hand, but spoke to both Troy and Gabriella.

"You two were truly, truly amazing. That song was beautiful, who wrote it?" she asked.

"Kelsi, the one who was playing the piano," Gabriella answered, reminding her grandmother of the small brunette.

Mariana nodded, "It was remarkable," she praised.

Gabriella couldn't help that she looked around her grandmother. She still hadn't seen her mother. Perhaps she was in the bathroom. But surely she had wanted to see her daughter after the show, right?

As if Mariana could read Gabriella's mind, she signed, not knowing how Gabriella was going to take this. Took Gabriella's hand before she explained softly, "She called me just before the show, something came up at work, she couldn't make it."

The words hit Gabriella like a knife. She had been so looking forward to seeing her mother's proud face. To hear her mother gush about how fantastic they had been.

"Oh" was the word that came out of her mouth as she tried to hide her disappointment. She was hurt. She never thought it would hurt as much as it did, but she felt upset that her mother had valued work more than this.

Her pained thoughts her interrupted when she saw Taylor coming running over,

"Gabriella Montez. That was spectactular!" she exclaimed, embracing her friend in a hug.

Chad approached Troy, "Dude! I didn't know you could sing like that! It was awesome man!"

"Thanks Chad," Troy smiled, although right now he was more concerned with the brunette who stood next to him. He instantly saw hurt wash over her when her grandmother told her about her mother. He knew she was trying to hide it – he could see it in her eyes.

Taylor chatted animatedly, but Gabriella wasn't paying any attention, all she could think about was her mother and the fact that she didn't come.

Troy squeezed Gabriella's hand, trying to smile supportively. He could have sworn he saw a tear roll down Gabriella's fragile face, but Gabriella quickly wiped it away before he could say anything.

* * *

East Elementary School was bustling with excitement. Artwork from students in kindergarten all the way through eighth grade lined the halls. Troy and Gabriella were walking hand in hand around the exhibits, searching for Lily's.

"She said it was down one of these halls," Gabriella muttered to herself, peering down hallways in hopes of spotting Lily. Since Troy was taller than Gabriella, he had an easier time of seeing down the hallways. He soon spotted her,

"I think I see her, come on," Troy pulled Gabriella closer and led her through the crowds of people.

After weaving through all the parents and students, Gabriella and Troy stood in front of Lily's exhibit. Mariana and Lucas were already there, commending Lily on her beautiful artwork.

Lily had quite a large section of the wall, which she had arranged 9 pieces of artwork on. She had drawn a picture of Gabriella smiling, of Lucas playing basketball, of Mariana cooking in the kitchen. She'd also painted some beautiful landscapes and sunsets. In the center there was quite a large drawing of Maria. As Gabriella got closer she could see it was titled, "I'm So Glad You Came back." Gabriella smiled, admiring her sister's work.

"Lily, these are amazing," she gushed.

Lily smiled proudly, "Thanks."

"Have you done _all_ of these since the school year started?" Troy asked.

Lily shook her head, "No way, I've only worked on this one," she pointed to one of the sunsets and then to the portrait of her mother, "and this one, since school started. The rest I've been working on through the summer," she explained.

"Ah, so that's why we weren't allowed in your room when you were drawing," Gabriella laughed.

"Maybe…"Lily teased sweetly.

"Well Lily, these are truly amazing. You've done a beautiful job, I'm so proud of you," Mariana smiled proudly, hugging her granddaughter.

"Did Mom come with you guys?" Lily asked hopefully, after Mariana had released her from the hug.

Gabriella looked confused, "No. I thought she was coming with you guys."

Mariana shook her head, "She said she was making her own way here."

Gabriella looked at the delicate watch on her wrist, the art show ended in an hour and a half. Maria better be here before that.

Upon seeing all her grandchildren's faces fade, Mariana tried to be optimistic, "I'm sure she'll be here any moment."

There was an awkwardness that fell over the group. Troy could sense Gabriella was unhappy and he could see Lily was hurt.

"Why don't we all go take a look around before they give out the awards," he suggested. When his suggested didn't lift spirits as much as he had hoped he tried something else, "I think I saw a refreshment table," he recalled with a sing songy voice.

Lucas' and Lily's eyes lit up and even Gabriella cracked a smile. Mariana flashed Troy a thankful smile, before the group moved back towards the lobby in search of the food.

* * *

An hour later Daniel Caliguire, the mayor of Albuquerque, stood on a small platform ready to give out the few awards of the night.

"Good evening, students, parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters and friends, it's an honor to be here tonight with all these talented young students," he greeted, "We've welcomed art students from all over the great state of New Mexico to our wonderful city to honor them for their achievements. While all these students are very talented we have a panel of judges who selected an artist from each age group to be honored in a national art extravaganza. So without further ado, let's begin." The mayor pulled a large envelope out of his coat pocket and opened it before he began, "In the first age group, ages 5 to 7, Miss Jenna Obe!"

As the small blonde girl made her way up to the stage, Gabriella glanced around the packed room. There was still no sign of her mother. She'd tried calling her 5 times, without any success. She knew Lily was upset that her mother hadn't shown up yet and kept looking around the crowd hopefully.

"….and in the 8 to 9 age group, Mr. Jonathon Yang!"

While a thin dark haired boy walked up to the mayor, Gabriella looked down at her phone, one last time, praying that maybe, just maybe, her mother had called or texted her to let them know she was in the building. Gabriella had no such luck. She was so angry with her mother. How _dare _she?

Troy could see Gabriella boiling with anger. It wasn't something he saw usually, so when he noticed Gabriella's clenched fists and furrowed eyebrows he knew something was seriously wrong. He grabbed her hand and squeezed it gently, to try and calm her down. She leaned back on him, letting her head fall against his chest as she squeezed his hand back.

Gabriella was thankful she had Troy there. She knew she had to keep her cool. She _wouldn't_ let her mother ruin Lily's special night.

"…and in the 10 to 11 age group, Miss Lily Montez!" The Mayor announced.

Lily's face lit up as her hands few to her heart in shock. She turned around to Gabriella with a face full of joy. Gabriella motioned her to go up to accept her award, smiling proudly the whole time. As Lily proudly took her award and shook the mayor's hand, the whole Montez family cheered enthusiastically.

When Lily came back, grinning from ear to ear, Gabriella was the first to envelope her in a big hug.

"Congratulations! I'm so happy for you!" she gushed.

"I can't believe it! I never thought _I'd_ win!" Lily exclaimed excitedly.

"I always thought you could," Mariana winked.

"Now I get to be in a national competition!" the 10 year old squealed, "What if I win that? Then, do you think I'd get to meet Obama?"

Everyone laughed.

"I guess you'll find out," Troy chuckled.

Lily grinned as her bright eyes continued to gaze at her plaque. She carefully ran her fingers over the wooden and gold object, examining the inscription.

Gabriella smiled as she watched the joy that had spread across her sister's face. Lily was so happy and Gabriella couldn't have asked for anything else – well except the presence of her mother. Perhaps the pure fact that Lily was so happy now, would outweigh the sadness that her mother still hadn't shown up.

* * *

Lily and Lucas sat in front of her exhibit. Lily held her award in her hands, staring down at it. She was waiting, waiting for her mother to show up to her art show. She had promised to come, she'd promised to be there, to see all the hard work she'd put into this show. So she'd be there, right?

Gabriella watched her brother and sister sit together silently. She watched their sad faces as she drank some of the unfinished coffee in her cup. The show had officially ended half an hour ago, but Lily had insisted that they stay. She was sure her mother would show up, that she was just running late. So, they had stayed to wait. There were a few people left, mostly people cleaning up though. The celebratory atmosphere that had once filled the space was long gone and all that was left was a feeling of emptiness.

A janitor came over to the bench Gabriella was sitting on,

"Excuse me miss, you'll have to get going. We're ready to close the school."

Gabriella nodded, and waited until he left before letting out a sigh. Mariana had left half an hour before; she wasn't feeling well and had decided to go lie down. Troy had offered to drive her home, insisting that they could get the car tomorrow. Gabriella knew Troy would be back soon to take her home as well.

Slowly, she made her way over to the exhibit,

"Time to go home guys, there closing up shop," she said softly.

"But mom hasn't come yet, can't we wait another 5 minutes?" Lily asked hopefully.

Gabriella crouched down to her siblings' level and shook her head, "The janitors have to close the school now. We have to go."

"But, but, she promised," Lily protested sadly.

"I know, I know," Gabriella agreed quietly.

"Then how come she didn't come?" Lily asked.

Gabriella shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know."

"She knew how much this meant to Lily," Lucas pointed out.

"How come she didn't care?" Lily questioned tearfully.

Gabriella reached out and brought Lily closer, to embrace her in a hug, "Shhhhh," she whispered, "It's ok. She probably just got caught up at work. She'll make the next one," Gabriella tried to assure her sister, even if she knew that didn't justify her mother's actions.

"But I wanted her here tonight," Lily cried softly.

"I know, I'm sorry Lily, I'm so sorry," she whispered. "Let's go home, it's been a long day."

Carefully she helped her brother and sister up and the three walked hand in hand towards the parking lot. Just as they were approaching the main entrance, Troy came walking through the doors. He understood immediately that Maria hadn't shown up after taking one took at Lily's tear stained face. He sighed and shook his head to himself, _what was this woman doing?_ He wondered.

* * *

Later that evening, Gabriella stood in the kitchen, putting away some of the dishes that had been left out to dry. Everyone else was asleep and Gabriella knew she should get to sleep soon, but her mind just wouldn't relax.

She couldn't decide if she was more upset or angry at her mother. Probably angry. After all the hurt Lily had been through, she was so angry that her mother had dared put her through that emotional pain again. She hated seeing her sister cry and she cursed herself for letting it happen. Gabriella had promised to take care of her brother and sister and she had failed. She should have physically gone to Maria's work and brought her to the art show.

As she placed the last dish in the cupboard, she heard the front door unlock and the sound of stilettos coming towards the kitchen. Gabriella couldn't hide the angry face that washed over her. Maria immediately knew her decision to work instead of go to Lily's show hadn't sat well with Gabriella.

"Gabriella, I'm sorry I couldn't be there for Lily's show. I promise I'll make it up to her," Maria assured her daughter.

"How? How are you going to do that?," Gabriella demanded, "This was once in a lifetime opportunity for Lily. She was so thrilled, but all she wanted was for you to come and see her art. She's spent _months_ preparing for this show," Gabriella threw up her hands in frustration.

"I had a really important business dinner at work, I couldn't miss it," Maria protested.

"You couldn't miss just one business dinner, for _one _night?" Gabriella reasoned.

"You wouldn't understand Gabriella," the older woman sighed.

"No. I don't understand," Gabriella agreed. "What I don't understand is how you could promise your daughter you would come to her show and then leave her hanging."

"This isn't about Lily, is this? This is about me not coming to _your_ show, last night," Maria accused.

"This has nothing to do with last night," Gabriella fired back.

"I'm not stupid Gabriella, I can see it does," Maria countered.

"Was I disappointed last night? Yes. Ok yes, it hurt that you didn't show," Gabriella admitted, "But you know what hurt more? Watching my little sister cry because her mother had the audacity not come," Gabriella continued angrily.

"And do you think it was easy for me not to come? Do you think it was easy for me to sit at the dinner knowing I was missing my daughter's art show?" Maria reminded her daughter.

"So then why didn't you come?" Gabriella asked, her voice softening, only slightly.

"Because, Gabriella, I had an important dinner with potential clients," she defended.

"So you thought that work was more important that your family?"

"It's not that…" Maria trailed off.

Gabriella threw her hands in the air again, "Then what is it? How many times are you going to hurt us before you realize what you're doing?"

"I made a mistake in the past Gabriella, I'm trying to fix it. I'm trying to make amends," Maria protested.

"It doesn't seem like it," Gabriella whispered coldly.

"You're never going to get over what happened, are you?" Maria said slowly. "You're always going to carry that hatred around with you. Just like your father."

Those four words hit Gabriella like a knife. A knife that cut into her heart and then twisted around. She wasn't anything like her father and she'd never be anything else her father. She'd promised herself that years before. How dare her mother?

Maria's words had been harsh and deliberate. Maria had spoken coldly and angrily, as if she was trying to spite Gabriella for indirectly calling her a bad mother.

"I'm done. We're done," Gabriella stated coldly before she threw the dish towel down and walked out of the kitchen leaving her mother behind just as angry.

* * *

**A/N: Ok, so honestly I'm not one hundred percent sure I liked the last part, but what did you guys think? This is only the tip of the iceberg, things are going to heat up next chapter, so get ready!**

**I hope you all liked the song it's called "Two Is Better than One" by Boys Like Girls ft Taylor Swift. I kinda shifted the parts around so Troy and Gabriella would have even singing parts. If you listen to the official version, it has more instruments, but I really liked the idea of hearing this song with just piano and guitar, like a cover version someone would do on youtube, you know? Anyway, you should check out some version of the song because it's a beautiful song :D I also have to thank everyone for their suggestions, I actually sat down and listened to all the songs, but then ultimately decided on this one because it was the one my gut kept going to. **

**Ah! The dress Gabriella wore will be in profile, towards the bottom! Thank you for reading, please review – I love hearing from you!**


	10. Tears

****

Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters.

**A/N: Hey guys! Sorry for the delay! I just got back from a Forensic Science Program (which was AWESOME!) I hope you all enjoy this chapter – get ready for the ride! Enjoy…**

* * *

Chapter Ten – Tears 

Troy groaned as the phone next to him rang. It was late, almost 1:30 am, and he was sleeping, or at least he was. He reached over and grabbed his phone, flipping it open and holding it to his ear.

"Hello?" he grumbled.

"_Troy?" came a quiet, tearful voice_.

His eyes snapped open and he immediately felt awake. That was Gabriella's voice that came through his cell phone. Why did she sound so upset?

"Gabriella?" his voice was laced with concern.

"_Can you come over?" she whispered. _

Troy was already out of his bed before he answered, "Give me 10 minutes. I'll be there in 10 minutes."

As he pulled on jeans he heard Gabriella sniffle, _"Thank you. I'll see you soon."_ When the line went dead, Troy shoved his phone in his pocket and quickly fumbled around for a shirt and shoes. In record time he was dressed and sneaking out the back door.

After a short jog, he was climbing up the tree in Gabriella's backyard. He pulled himself up the branches and then hoisted himself over the balcony railing. He quietly opened the French doors into Gabriella room. She was facing away from him, sitting on her bed with earphones in. Her hair was up in a messy bun and Troy could see she was wearing her pajamas.

Quietly, so he didn't scare her, he made his way around her bed and gently tapped her on the shoulder before he sat down next to her. Gabriella pulled out her earphones and looked up with sad, tired eyes,

"Classical music calms me down," Gabriella offered as if she was trying to keep herself from bursting into tears.

Troy saw a tear drip down Gabriella's face. She didn't even bother to wipe it away as she stared down. He gently reached across the brunette and let his hand carefully push her cheek towards him.

"What happened, Brie?" he asked seriously.

"I'm done. I'm done," she sniffled.

"Done with what?" Troy coaxed.

"Her," Gabriella's voice was laced with bitterness, in a way Troy had only heard once or twice before.

"Brie…" Troy began. He knew Gabriella was upset with her mother for not coming to both the shows, mainly Lily's art show, but part of him knew that she really wanted to have a mother again.

Gabriella shook her head, she wanted to explain, "She came home and I confronted her about the art show. But she chose business again Troy. She chose her work over us. _Again. _I can't, I can't let her leave us hurting again." Tears were falling freely down her face as her voice cracked, "I just feel like she's not trying. I tried but here I am crying again," she threw her hands up in frustration.

"Shhhh," Troy soothed as he wiped her tears with the pads of his thumbs, "I know you're trying."

"But she doesn't," she whimpered.

"That's her fault then," Troy reasoned, "If she's not going to try, then you don't have to try either."

Troy studied the red faced brunette in front of him. Even though her eyes were glossed with tears, he could see a deep, deep hurt in her eyes. She broke eye contact with him, to stare at her lap. Something more was bothering her. There was something that was eating her inside that she wasn't telling him.

"Brie," he whispered.

Gabriella looked up at Troy with shameful eyes waiting for his question,

"What aren't you telling me?" he probed carefully.

"She said, she said I was just like him. That I hate people, just like he did," her voice cracked. "I don't want to turn into a monster Troy," she sobbed.

Troy pulled her into a tight embrace as her small body racked with sobs. He could feel the pain that radiated through her. God he hated it when she cried.

"No baby no, she's wrong," Troy soothed, kissing her hair, "You are _nothing_ like him. I promise."

"But she said-" Gabriella sniffled.

"Hey, hey," he whispered, leaning back and trying to look at Gabriella's face. Once she realized she'd lost contact with Troy's warm chest Gabriella quickly found the comfort of his kind eyes.

"It doesn't matter what your mom says. I know that you are nothing like your father. You are loving and caring; you are considerate and compassionate; and intelligent and strong. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise," Troy reminded her.

Gabriella squeezed her eyes shut and more tears leaked out, "I used to think he was all those things," she pointed out, "What if I turn out like him when I'm older? What if it's in my genes?"

"I'm pretty sure that your 32 chromosomes don't code for being a monster. Besides, I'm not going to let that happen to you," Troy assured her.

"You sure?"

Troy nodded, "I promise."

Gabriella smiled a watery smile before she started to wipe the streams of tears off her face with her palms.

"Are you alright now?" Troy asked gently.

"Mmmhmm, thank you for coming," Gabriella said appreciatively. "If you want to back home, you can," she whispered.

"Or I could stay here with you," Troy suggested, a grin spreading across his face. Gabriella smiled, the first real smile he'd seen all night.

"I was hoping you'd say that," she admitted. She scooted back on her bed and started to push her legs under the warm covers. Troy got up to turn off the lights but then quickly joined Gabriella in her bed. When he was laying flat on his back, Gabriella snuggled close, resting her head on his strong chest.

"Goodnight," Gabriella whispered.

"Goodnight Brie."Troy let his arm pull her closer as he closed his eyes contently.

"Troy?" Gabriella murmured a few seconds later.

"Yeah?"

"Humans have 46 chromosomes, 23 pairs," Gabriella explained, "I don't know where you got 32 from."

Troy couldn't help but laugh, "You are such a nerd," he mumbled affectionately.

"You should pay more attention in bio," Gabriella countered.

"And you should get a lock for your balcony doors, but we can't all have what we want," Troy reminded her.

Gabriella giggled, "Night Troy. I love you."

"I love you too."

* * *

As the bright sunlight of the morning shone through her balcony doors, Gabriella rolled onto her back and opened her tired eyes. She sighed and looked to her left, expecting to see Troy's sleeping figure beside her, but instead her eyes landed on a folded piece of notebook paper. Curious, she grabbed the paper, opened it and began to read…

_Morning Beautiful, _

_As much as I would have liked to stay here all morning with you, I think my mother would have a fit she woke up and I wasn't home. I'll call you later._

_Troy_

Gabriella smiled and folded the note again. She glanced at the clock and was slightly shocked when she saw it was almost 11. She rarely slept this late, but then again she rarely stayed up at late as she had.

She noticed, as she made her way downstairs, that the house was very quiet – unusually quiet. Normally there was chatter from the kitchen or the sound of TV on. But this morning, nothing.

She made her way into the kitchen and found her grandmother sitting at the kitchen table drinking tea. Her grandmother looked frail and tired, two words she would never use to describe Mariana.

"Abuelita, are you ok?" Gabriella asked softly, concern lacing her voice. She sat down right next her and paced a hand over hers.

"I'm fine, just a little headache," Mariana assured her.

"You sure?"

Mariana nodded. Gabriella squeezed her grandmother's hand before she got up to grab the teapot and another cup. Before she poured herself some tea, she refilled her grandmother's cup.

"Where is everyone?" she asked after she sat down.

"Your mother took Lily and Lucas out for brunch," Mariana explained. Gabriella didn't say anything, instead she just looked down at her tea as she drank it.

It was Mariana's turn to put her hand on Gabriella's, "I know you're upset Gabriella, but she's trying, please remember that."

"I'm trying too," Gabriella reminded her, "But I don't know how long I can keep getting let down," she admitted.

"I know you're trying. And I know it's hard, but I just want you to be happy," Mariana reiterated.

Gabriella nodded silently, and continued to sip the warm tea.

"Let me get you some breakfast," Mariana offered, "and you can me about what you and Troy talked about last night," she added, giving Gabriella a knowing look.

"How did you-?" Gabriella asked, completely shocked.

Mariana eased herself up from the table, "I may be old but I…" She stopped speaking mid-sentence and was suddenly breathless, as if she had just run 10 miles.

Gabriella quickly turned in her chair to see her grandmother panting as she held onto the table with both hands. Standing up behind her she quickly asked if she was alright,

"Just tired, just tired," Mariana wheezed, trying to assure her concerned granddaughter that she was ok.

"Why don't you sit down?" Gabriella suggested, as she eased her back into the chair. Mariana's face suddenly scrunched in pain as she grasped her lower chest.

"What hurts?" Gabriella asked worriedly.

Mariana was breathing heavily by this time, but she managed to speak, "My chest, my back."

Gabriella watched as her grandmother's pain increased. It dawned on her that the symptoms weren't stopping – she needed to take more serious action. She grabbed the phone off the kitchen counter and quickly dialed 911. As she listened to it ringing she sat back down next to her grandmother to try and ease her pain.

"_911, what's your emergency?" _

"My grandmother is complaining of lower chest and back pains. She's out of breath and looked really tired this morning," Gabriella explained, surprised at how calm her voice was.

"_How serve is the pain?"_

"She can't move," Gabriella answered bluntly. Suddenly she watched in horror as her grandmother's head slumped forward. She shook her shoulder, "Abuelita?" When there was no response, Gabriella shook harder, "Abuela!" All of a sudden that calm Gabriella was gone, and replaced with a terrified one, "Please!" she cried into the phone, "You've got to hurry and send an ambulance! She's fainted – she's not responding to me!"

"_Ma'am, I need you to remain calm. I need your address."_

Suddenly, Gabriella struggled to remember their address, "Um 57 uh Spring Hill Rd, please hurry!" she begged desperately.

"_I'm sending an ambulance, they should be there shortly. I'm going to stay on the line with you until they do. Is she still breathing?" _

"Yes, but barely," Gabriella answered quickly.

"_And a pulse?" _

Gabriella placed two shaky fingers on her grandmother's neck and waited to feel a pulse, "I feel a faint pulse, but it's not enough. You need to hurry!" Gabriella could feel her own breathing hitching, she couldn't find the air she needed to breathe. She was so scared. She couldn't lose her grandmother, not now.

"_It's going to be alright, you just need to stay calm and keep monitoring her vitals," the operator tried to assure her. _

Within minutes Gabriella could hear sirens, but she didn't dare move from her chair. By the time the paramedics came running in, she was muttering incoherent things, trying to explain what happened as tears ran down her face.

She could barely process what was happening as suddenly her grandmother was on a stretcher, being wheeled out of the house with an oxygen mask covering her mouth.

How had this happened? Why so suddenly? But most importantly, would she be ok? Gabriella prayed her grandmother would be as she quickly followed the paramedics out of the once quiet house.

* * *

**A/N: Oooooo It's been a while since I've left you guys with a good cliffy :D In all fairness I did warn you. Thank you so much for reading, let me know what you think!**


	11. The Hospital

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters. **

**A/N: Hey guys. So I gotta be honest here. On Sunday I'm leaving for vacation until the 7****th**** of September. So you might not hear from me for a while. BUT I'm still here, AND I'll come back to this story. I PROMISE! Thanks for all your support! Enjoy…**

* * *

Chapter Eleven – The Hospital

The waiting room, Gabriella soon learned, was not a fun place. In fact, it was more like torture than anything. You sat in this small room with strangers, who were also struggling with the same worried thoughts, waiting for any sort of information that anyone could give you. Every time the door opened Gabriella, and everyone else, would turn and stare hopefully at whoever was at the door. It seemed like every time Gabriella thought it might be her turn to hear information, it was someone else's loved one the doctor had information for.

She had been sitting for what seemed like hours, but she honestly had no idea how long it had been. Though the room was silent, Gabriella's head was throbbing. She couldn't stop thinking about what had happened. Gabriella couldn't help but wonder, what if. What if she'd acted earlier? Why hadn't she noticed earlier? What if she'd said something? What if she'd been too late in deciding to call?

Suddenly every memory from her childhood summers spent in Spain came flooding back. She could feel the warm sand between her toes as she built elaborate sandcastles. She could hear the festive sounds of latin music as she and her grandmother danced around the house. She could smell the salty ocean as they splashed in the waves. She could taste the warm cookies and pastries they'd make on rainy days.

But suddenly Gabriella couldn't breathe, because she couldn't remember the last time she'd told her grandmother she loved her. Had it really been _that_ long ago? What if she never got the chance to say it again?

She just couldn't stand the thought of losing her. Especially right now. Her grandmother was more of a mother to her than a grandmother and certainly more of a mother than her actual mother was. Why was it when everything seemed to be going ok, things always took a sharp turn for the worse?

The waiting room door opened again and Gabriella looked up hopefully. Though it wasn't a doctor, Gabriella was happy to see Lucas and Lily coming towards her. They crashed into her arms and she hugged them tightly.

"What happened?" "Where is she?" "Is she going to be ok?"

The twins fired questions at Gabriella as quickly as their mouths could speak. Gabriella was on her knees, so she could be at their level, when she answered,

"I'm not sure what happened exactly. She wasn't feeling well this morning and then things took a turn for the worse," Gabriella explained gently, leaving out the details to spare her young brother and sister, "The doctors are working on her now."

"Well what have they told you?" Maria asked frantically, when she appeared over Lucas and Lily.

Gabriella didn't stand up, she stayed kneeing with Lucas and Lily, "They haven't told me anything," she answered.

"I'll be back in a few minutes," Maria announced.

This time Gabriella stood up, "Where are you going?"

"To get some information," Maria answered before she continued walking towards the exit of the waiting room.

"But they said to wait -," Gabriella called out in vain after her mother, who clearly wasn't listening "-here" she finished as she slumped back into her chair, with Lucas and Lily occupying the ones on either side. She griped each of their hands, trying to provide moral support. She was glad that Lucas and Lily were here with her now, even if that meant their mother was here as well. Lucas and Lily deserved to know what was happening with their grandmother. It had been the right choice, she decided, to call Maria, though she could barely remember doing so. She had made another phone call as well. Who was that to again? Oh right,

Owen.

* * *

Troy hoisted himself over Gabriella's balcony, for the second time in less than twenty four hours. He pushed open the French doors, disgruntled by the fact that there was still no lock. Maybe he'd have to fix that himself.

Quietly, he shut the doors behind him. Since no one had answered the front door, he just assumed that Gabriella was home alone sleeping. He certainly didn't want to startle her awake by making a racket entering her room. He crept over to her bed, but quickly noticed that something was missing, or rather, _someone_.

Troy's eyebrows furrowed – that was strange. He expected Gabriella to be staying home all day – especially after last night. Pulling out his cell phone he quickly texted her,

_I'm in your room, but you're not…?_

Less than two seconds after he sent the message, he heard a buzz. But not from his phone, from Gabriella's desk. Sure enough there on Gabriella's desk, was her cell phone.

Ok, now he was confused. Gabriella didn't always answer her texts immediately, but she always brought her phone with her. That's when he noticed a post-it note on her desk with bold sharpie written all over it:

**WORK FOR MAYA SATURDAY!**

Troy smiled, he could picture Gabriella waking up, leisurely ambling over to her desk to check her phone, only to see this note. He couldn't help but chuckle when he pictured her frantically dashing out the door, easily forgetting her cell phone.

Now, Troy decided, it was time to pay his favorite girl a visit.

* * *

A little while later, Maria came back into the waiting room, with no information. She sat on the other side of Lily seemingly consumed with her blackberry.

Gabriella closed her eyes, squeezing her brother and sister's hands. She wanted to say something, but there were no words coming to mind. She just couldn't think of the right thing to say.

It seemed like hours passed before _finally_ the door opened again. A young nurse appeared at the door,

"Montez," she called out.

Gabriella immediately jumped up, quickly followed by her mother and siblings. The nurse motioned for them to follow her out into the hall. When they were out in the hall, the nurse turned to Maria,

"Maybe it would be best if the kids wait while we go talk to the doctor."

"_What?" _Gabriella mentally screamed. She wanted to know what was going on with her grandmother as well!

Then she looked down at Lucas and Lily, who looked just as angry that they weren't welcome in the doctor's office. She knew that the nurse would probably allow her in, after all she wasn't a 'kid'. However, she also knew that there was no way the nurse would be letting Lucas and Lily in. And she wasn't about to leave them alone in the horrid waiting room.

So, she nodded and grabbed her siblings' hands, "We'll go for a walk outside," she offered.

The nurse nodded and quickly escorted Maria down the corridor.

* * *

As Troy made his way into the borders store, he noticed a group of about five teenage boys crowding the cash register. They all turned about when they heard the bells on the door. Troy couldn't help but feel annoyed when he recognized all the teenagers as West High basketball players. His least favorite, James Scott, being the center of the pack.

"Well, look who it is," James grinned mischievously, "It's Troy Bolton, himself."

"Funny I should run into you here, I didn't know you could read," Troy shot back bitterly.

Ignoring Troy's comment, James continued, "Are you looking for someone?" he asked.

Annoyed, Troy answered quickly, "Actually I am," he snapped, walking towards the back of the store.

"Gabriella?" James asked cockily. Troy stopped in his tracks and turned back around,

"What are you playing at?" His voice was cold and harsh.

James shrugged innocently, "Well she's not here."

Troy was walking closer to James now, "What the hell are you talking about?" He knew James played dirty and it worried him that Gabriella was their topic of conversations.

"Awww does Troy not know where his precious girlfriend is?" James taunted. Troy could feel his blood boiling and as much as he tried to keep it disguised, he knew his face was turning red,

"I swear to God-" Troy's voice was raised, but he was interrupted by the store manager, Sophie's angry voice,

"I will not have this type of behavior in my store!"

Troy stepped away from James, thankful that he'd actually met Sophie before. Maybe she wouldn't kick him out so he could actually find out what was going on.

"Owen, this is not the time to be socializing. That can be done _after _work. Your friends can leave now," Sophie reminded him firmly.

James and the rest of his friends took the hint and quickly left the store, but not without giving Troy a wicked smile.

Now Troy didn't trust Owen at all. He was angry that he had become friends with Gabriella, he was worried that Owen was up to no good. However, right now he wanted to know what the hell James had been on about. It seemed that the only person who had that kind of information was Owen, unfortunately.

Once Sophie had gone back to the back of the store, Troy approached Owen,

"What were they talking about? Where's Gabriella?"

Owen shrugged, "I'm not entirely sure man. She called me this morning and asked me work for her."

Troy furrowed his eyebrows, "Did she say why?" he asked.

"I mean she seemed pretty upset because she was mumbling quickly. Something about being at a hospital," Owen explained vaguely, "I don't know I was tired, she was rambling, it was hard to understand her."

Troy's eyes widened. _Hospital? _

* * *

Heart Attack. Artery blockage. Surgery. Death.

Those were the words that stood out to Gabriella as she listened to Maria explain what the doctor had told her about Mariana's condition. She felt overwhelmed, how had this happened so fast? How had she been laughing with her grandmother this morning and then this afternoon she was in a cold hospital?

"Gabriella" Maria snapped her out of her daze, "Gabriella are you listening?"

Gabriella nodded, of course she was listening. She'd heard every word.

"The surgery is tomorrow morning," Maria reminded her.

"Does she _need _the surgery?" Gabriella asked.

"The surgery will reduce her risk of having another heart attack," Maria clarified.

"But is she strong enough to have surgery this soon?" Gabriella wondered.

"The doctors said now is the best time," her mother answered. "Right now I'm going to take Lucas and Lily the cafeteria to give you time with her, then I'll take you all home for the night and we'll come back in the morning," Maria explained.

Gabriella nodded, but Maria was already turning to open Mariana's hospital room's door. Gabriella took a deep breath to keep herself strong, while Maria pulled Lucas and Lily out of the room.

Slowly Gabriella opened the door. She couldn't help but smile a little bit when she saw her grandmother sitting up. She was relieved that her grandmother looked well enough. Mariana's face also formed a bright smile – clearly happy to finally see her eldest granddaughter.

Gabriella crossed the small room and enveloped her in a warm embrace,

"I'm so glad you are ok, I was so worried," she whispered.

"I'm sorry for scaring you mi cielo," Mariana apologized, "I know that must have been frightening for you."

"I'm just glad you're alright," Gabriella admitted, pulling away from the hug.

"So," Mariana began enthusiastically, "you still need to tell me about what happened with you and Troy."

Gabriella bowed her head bashfully.

"Come on," Mariana coaxed.

Gabriella smiled shyly before she began, "Well I called him, kinda early in the morning, because I was upset. I guess I just didn't want to be alone. He came over and we talked for a while. He just always knows how to make me feel better. He always has the right words."

"What does he say?" Mariana asked curiously.

"He just wants what's best for me. He knows how upsetting all this and he makes me feel better," Gabriella explained simply.

Mariana smiled, "You're lucky to have that Troy, you know."

"I know," Gabriella whispered.

"Do you know what I was thinking about earlier?" Mariana asked.

"What?"

"I was thinking about all those summers you used to come visit. We always had so much fun. Do you remember that time we spent all day at the beach?" Mariana smiled happily.

Gabriella grinned, "And we built a sandcastle as big as me!"

The grandmother and granddaughter spent the next hour talking and laughing about memories. All the pain from this morning and last night seemed to disappear and Gabriella loved every minute of it.

She loved her grandmother, indescribably. To spend this precious time with her without the distractions of the outside world was so meaningful.

* * *

About half an hour after the Montez family had left the hospital, Mariana lay in her bed with her eyes closed. She wasn't sleeping, nor did she want to. She was simply resting and relaxing.

That was until she heard a knock on her door. Opening her eyes she called for whoever was at the door to come in. The door opened and Troy's head peered around the door.

"Troy, what a lovely surprise," she smiled.

"How are you feeling?" Troy asked, even though he had absolutely no idea what had happened.

"Well considering I had a heart attack this morning, I feel pretty good," Mariana answered.

Troy's eyes widened in surprise, "And everything looks alright?"

Mariana nodded, "I'm fine now. I'm having surgery in the morning though to prevent another one. Apparently I'm at high risk."

"You'll probably be getting a visit from my mother after your surgery, you know," Troy smiled.

"I sure hope so," Mariana laughed. "But Troy, surely you didn't come here to socialize with an old woman." Mariana said, as more of a question really.

Troy shoved his hands in his pockets, "Yeah, I was actually looking for Gabriella. I dropped by her work to make sure she was ok after what happened at the art show yesterday, but Owen said she'd called him asking him to work for her because something had happened with the hospital. And that kinda freaked me out," he explained quickly.

Mariana smiled softly, the concern in Troy's voice was evident. "You actually just missed Gabriella. She, Lucas, Lily and her mother left about half an hour ago," she said.

"Oh," Troy answered awkwardly.

"But before you go find her Troy, there is something I wanted to talk to you about." The older woman confessed.

Troy nodded, and pulled a seat next to Mariana's bed.

"I'm all ears,"

"It's about Gabriella."

* * *

**A/N: What? Two cliffhangers in a row? This one isn't so bad, is it? I hope you all liked the chapter – I'd love to hear your thoughts!**


	12. Why?

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters. **

**A/N: Oh hey guys. Long time no speak. I know, I know, it's been forever. Let me just warn all you students out there: College Apps SUCK. I'm going to try to update this as often as I can, but when I'm not doing homework, I'm doing college apps, and when I'm not doing college apps, I'm doing homework. But let's not talk about my life suck. Hopefully you guys like this chapter and won't want to kill me after it. Enjoy…**

**

* * *

**

Chapter Twelve – Why?

Gabriella sat on one side of Mariana's hospital bed, while Lucas and Lily sat on the opposite side. The four were playing cards on a small lap table that Mariana had placed in her lap.

"Another win for Gabriella!" Gabriella exclaimed happily as she placed down the winning cards.

Lucas groaned, "Are you kidding me? How are you so good at this game?"

Gabriella smiled, "Just practice."

"Let's play again!" Lily suggested.

Gabriella laughed and shuffled the cards in her hand before she started to deal them again. Just as she was finished dealing, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Mariana called.

Gabriella turned her head, curious to see who was going to enter. The door opened and Lucille and Troy came walking through.

"Oh Mariana, when Troy told me, I was so worried. I'm glad to see you're alright," Lucille exclaimed quickly making her way over to the bed to hug her friend, "And while you're recovering, if Maria, you can't get home from work in time, the kids are always welcome at our house and I'd be happy to drive them wherever. Whatever you need, we'll help out in whatever way we can," she assured them.

Mariana squeezed Lucille's hand in gratitude, "Thank you."

By that time, Troy had already made his own way over to the bed and kissed Gabriella's cheek, "Good morning," he whispered.

"Hi," Gabriella whispered back.

"So what are we playing here?" Troy asked. Gabriella opened her mouth to respond, but Lucas quickly responded,

"Rummie! Except Gabriella and grandma are really really good at this game, so they just keep winning," Lucas complained.

"How about I'll be on your team Lucas and we'll beat your sister," Troy suggested, grinning.

"I get to be on Gabi's team!" Lily announced.

Gabriella smiled, "We'll take'em, right?"

With that, Gabriella began dealing again, this time with a competitive grin on her face. After seven, extremely close rounds, Mariana had come out on top with three wins, while the other two teams only won two each.

"We _have_ to play again!" Lily exclaimed.

Mariana chuckled, "Oh we have to, do we?"

"Yeah!" Lucas agreed, "to break the tie between our two teams."

Troy leaned back in his chair nonchalantly, "Luc, don't even worry about it, we're clearly better than the girls."

"Looks like someone is just afraid that he'll lose," Gabriella challenged.

"Oh I don't think so," Troy shook his head, "You're on."

Just as Troy was about to begin dealing the cards, there was a knock on the wooden door. Dr. Avery walked in with two nurses.

"I hate to interrupt this lovely card game, but we need to begin prepping Ms. Ortiz for surgery," Dr. Avery announced.

The lighthearted mood in the room immediately turned serious. The reality was beginning to set in, this was really happening.

"I'll give you a few minutes," Dr. Avery offered, before he walked out of the room.

There were a few moments of somber silence, before Lucille spoke,

"It was lovely to see you," she smiled, hugging Mariana.

"Oh thank you for coming to visit and thank you for taking Lucas and Lily," Mariana whispered.

"It's our pleasure. I'll bring them back tomorrow morning," Lucille assured her.

Lucas and Lily approached their grandmother and quickly engulfed her in a long warm hug. Gabriella watched as they whispered words of love and luck.

While Lucas and Lily spent precious time with their grandmother, Troy moved towards Gabriella to say goodbye.

"You'll keep Lucas and Lily busy, won't you?" Gabriella requested quietly.

Troy nodded understandingly, "Of course we will, this is my family we're talking about."

Gabriella smiled, "Thank you."

"She'll be ok," Troy whispered.

Gabriella nodded quickly, trying to keep her tears from falling. It wasn't that she thought her grandmother wasn't going to make it, it was just that there this was this worry that plagued her. The thought of what if.

Troy pulled her into a tight hug, and kissed her forehead comfortingly.

"You can call me tonight," he whispered.

Gabriella nodded, "I will."

Troy squeezed Gabriella's hand, one last time, before he made his way over to Mariana. As he leaned over and hugged her, she leaned up and whispered in his ear, "Remember what we talked about." Troy nodded, before he pulled away

* * *

Gabriella sat with her heavy head in her hands as she listened to Doctor Avery explain what had happened during the surgery. Why suddenly was everything so wrong?

"We were successfully able to perform the bypass, however Ms. Ortiz suffered from a stroke during the surgery," he explained.

"But what does that mean for us?" Maria asked bluntly.

"We're going to monitor her brain activity and then decide how best to proceed," Dr. Avery answered.

"You're not answering my question. When is my mother going to wake up?" Maria pressed.

"I can't answer that with any degree of certainty. Depending on the damage, it could be hours, days, weeks or never."

_Never_. That word echoed over and over in Gabriella's brain. _No, _she decided, she wasn't going to let herself think like that. The doctor had said Mariana could wake up. That was what she going to focus on, the silver lining.

* * *

Dr. Avery called Gabriella and Maria into his office about 3 hours later. As if the tension between Gabriella and Maria wasn't enough, Dr. Avery added a layer of somberness to the thick atmosphere.

He motioned for the two women to sit down in the chairs directly in front of his desk.

"I've just received the results from the tests we ran and I have to say that the results are not what we had hoped for. It seems that Ms. Ortiz suffered severely from the stroke. It seems that her condition is growing worse as the hours press on. We've had to put her on life support and her brain activity is lowering as we speak," Dr. Avery explained sadly.

"Why aren't you _doing_ something about it?" Maria demanded.

"Honestly we've done everything we can," Dr. Avery answered.

"But she could still be ok?" Gabriella asked hopefully.

Dr. Avery shook his head, "In her current state, the likelihood that her condition gets better is low."

"But there's a chance?" Gabriella pressed, inching to the edge of her chair.

"There's a very small chance, but even if she does get better, she'll never be the same. She'll likely have severe memory loss and will most likely be blind."

"We could help her. She could wake up," Gabriella muttered hopefully. She was not giving up on her grandmother. Not now. Not ever. She would be ok. She _had _to be.

* * *

An hour later Gabriella and Maria were back in Mariana's hospital room. Mariana had machines surrounding her and wires attached to different points on her body. She had a tube in her nose helping her breathe and a large bandage over her chest.

Gabriella sat on one side of her grandmother, grasping Mariana's hand tightly, while Maria sat at a small table near the end of Mariana's bed. There was a knock at the door and then Dr. Avery entered and quietly asked for Maria to join him in the hallway.

Gabriella stayed inside the cold room, her hand firmly grasping her grandmother's weak one. She'd been whispering words of encouragement the entire time, in English _and _Spanish – just for good measure.

But the woman lying in front of her was not the grandmother she knew. This woman was pale and weak. Her grandmother was warm and strong. Gabriella had faith that the Mariana she knew would come back, she'd wake up. The Mariana she knew wouldn't give up.

When Maria reentered the room, her face looked torn. She walked over to Gabriella, "I want you to understand that the doctors did everything they could," she began softly, "However your grandmother's condition has deteriorated completely now. They say she's brain dead. The only reason she's still alive is because of the machines that are keeping her heart beating and her lungs working," Maria explained quietly.

"So we just wait for her to wake up," Gabriella reminded her firmly.

Maria shook her head, "I don't think that's going to happen. We need to think about taking her off the machines."

"No!" Gabriella exclaimed, "She's strong, she'll wake up from this."

"Gabriella I know this is hard for you to accept."

"It wouldn't be so hard if you would just give her a chance!" Gabriella countered.

"Stop acting like child, the doctor says she's not going to wake up," Maria responded angrily.

"No, the doctors say it's _unlikely_ she's going to wake up," Gabriella interrupted fiercely.

"They said there is a 1% chance, for someone who was young and healthy. The probability decreases as people age," Maria reminded her daughter.

"So why can't we give her that chance? It's barely been a day!" Gabriella threw her hands in the air in frustration.

"Gabriella things aren't going to get better. The reality is we don't have the resources to keep her on the expensive machines," Maria argued.

"I'll work more and I have money saved," Gabriella protested, "I can help with the finances," she insisted.

"What about Lucas and Lily? Is it fair to them to give them false hope?" Maria questioned.

"How do you know it's false hope?" Gabriella demanded.

Maria sighed, "Gabriella this is what's best for this family and more importantly, it's what is best for your grandmother."

"_Killing_ her is better for everyone?" Gabriella spat bitterly, "Despite what you might think, I'm not a child anymore. I have opinions and it hurts that you won't listen to any of them."

Gabriella turned, furiously, and walked out of the hospital room. She couldn't understand why the people around her didn't have the same faith that she had.

* * *

Gabriella sat in the cafeteria, tears streaming down her face. Why didn't anyone else have faith that her grandmother would make it through? Why didn't they remember her strength? Why couldn't they give her a chance?

She was so angry with her mother. Why was she rushing this? Why couldn't they just wait a few days? Why was she giving in so easily?

She refused to believe that there was nothing left the doctors could do. This was the 21st century, wasn't there some new technology to help her grandmother. There had to be something, _anything, _they could at least try.

She heard the familiar clicking of heels and before she knew it her mother was sitting in the chair opposite her.

"Try to understand that I'm doing what's best for this family Gabriella. Despite what you might think, I didn't want it to work out this way either" Maria explained quietly.

"Why don't you give her more time?" Gabriella asked, an angry tone audible in her quiet voice.

"I've talked to Dr. Avery, we've exhausted every possibility. Taking her off the machines is our only option," Maria answered.

Gabriella looked up at her mother with cold eyes, "I'm not going to change your mind, am I? You're not going to listen to my opinion, are you?"

"She's gone Gabriella, nothing is going to change that," Maria whispered, "You should go and say your goodbyes."

"What about Lucas and Lily?" Gabriella asked.

"I think it'd be too hard for them to be here for this. I'll give you time with her."

Gabriella nodded, silently. She stood up from the table and walked out of the cafeteria, towards her grandmother's hospital room. Carefully, she pushed open the door and walked into the room. She sat down in the uncomfortable plastic chair and pulled it closer, before she laced her hand with her grandmother's.

"Abuelita," she whispered, "I want to keep fighting for you, I really do, but she won't let me. I don't want to lose you. I don't want this to end. I feel like I just got you back," her voice cracked. Gabriella quickly wiped the tears that were falling,

"I don't know what I'm going to do Abuelita. I don't know how I'm supposed to deal with Maria being here. I want you here to help me.

"If you just show some sign of life then maybe the doctors won't have to do this. You could just move your finger to show them how strong you are. Prove to them that you can make it. I've tried, but they won't listen to me. They'd listen to you though," Gabriella sniffled.

"Te amo mucho, abuelita," she whispered, kissing Mariana's knuckles affectionately. Gabriella closed her eyes tightly, trying to block the tears. She lay her head down trying to be as close to her grandmother as possible.

* * *

Gabriella sat on Mariana's right side, while Maria sat on the other side. Gabriella gripped Mariana's hand tightly, as Dr. Avery walked into the room. Silently, he walked over to the left side of the room.

"I'm so sorry this is the way it had to end," he said softly.

Maria nodded in gratitude, while Gabriella squeezed her eyes shut, trying to wake up from what seemed like a nightmare.

Gabriella listened as Dr. Avery flipped off the switch of the life support machines. She heard the steady beat of the heart monitor slowly decrease until it formed a long single beep. Dr. Avery shut off the machine and quietly whispered that he'd give them all the time they needed.

Maria leaned up and kissed her mother on the forehead and murmured a prayer before she stood up and quietly exited the room.

As soon as she was alone in the room, Gabriella burst into sobs. She felt her heart wrench as she suddenly realized that this was not a dream. Her grandmother was dead. She was gone. Her only adult family member she'd ever been able to rely on was gone.

She should have fought harder. She should have fought harder against her mother to keep her grandmother alive. She felt like she'd failed. She'd failed her brother, her sister, herself, but most important her grandmother.

Gabriella clutched her grandmother's hand, trying to prevent the pain that was spreading through her body, from getting more intense. She lay her head down next to Mariana and closed her eyes. She wanted to stay with her grandmother for as long as possible.

* * *

**A/N: So I know MOST of you are going to want to kill me, right now…and there isn't really much I can do about that. However, this is the beginning of climax of the story. The excitement is only just beginning. I have a lot more in store for you guys. Thanks for reading, please review!**


	13. The Stars

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters.**

**A/N: Hey guys! This chapter is definitely kinda depressing – just a warning. I hope you can still enjoy it though! **

**

* * *

**

Chapter 13 – The Stars

Gabriella spent all of Monday with her brother and sister. She tried to be strong for them while Maria planned the funeral service. She tried to hold herself together as she explained to Lucas and Lily what had happened. She tried to keep her own opinions out of it. She tried to be objective. That made it easier for her, easier for her to keep strong, to keep the tears away. But as they sat together on the couch talking about everything, she just couldn't stop the tears from falling. The three spent a lot of time on the couch, with tears in their eyes.

So, they all went to bed early. They curled up in Gabriella's bed together and fell asleep long before it was dark. The whole day had been a blur. A painful blur, but those last few moments before she fell asleep, were a welcomed solstice away from the world.

The next day, Gabriella woke up and for a moment she forgot about the events of previous days. But then she felt Lucas and Lily still curled next to her. Then she remembered how much pain was in her heart. She pulled Lily closer to her, and squeezed her eyes shut. She was exhausted, mentally and physically, and all she wanted to do was fall back asleep. And so she did.

When she woke again, Lucas and Lily had disappeared from her bed. She wanted to get out of her bed, to see spend more time with her brother and sister. However, a bigger part of her just wanted to lie there with her eyes closed for the rest of the day. And that bigger part of her, won.

The brunette rolled onto her side and curled her legs up. She pulled her warm covers up to her chin, trying to seek some comfort. After that she wasn't sure how long she was asleep for, or if she had even fallen asleep. Eventually she rolled over again and opened her eyes again, wincing at the sunlight. Glancing at the clock she could see it was almost two in the afternoon.

Reaching over, she grabbed her phone, which she hadn't looked at in almost 24 hours. She had 8 voicemails and 10 new text messages. She knew what they said and who they were from without even looking. While she was thankful to have such caring friends, she just couldn't face talking to people right now. Talking about it brought back the tears and that pain in her heart that had become all too familiar.

She heard the doorbell ring, but couldn't be bothered to get up to see who was at the door. Someone else would get it, she figured. She closed her eyes again. Soon there were two simple knocks at the door. Gabriella probably should have said something, but she didn't. Whoever was at the door would know to come in anyway.

Moments later, Gabriella heard her door creak open. Slowly, she opened her eyes and saw Taylor's head peak around the door. Once the two girls made eye contact, Taylor quietly entered the room.

"Hey" Taylor whispered softly. She watched as her best friend slowly sat up, crossing her legs under the covers.

"Hi" Gabriella murmured. Taylor studied Gabriella carefully, trying to figure out the best thing to say. Her eyes were tired and full of sorrow. Her face was drained of color and her hair was limp and messy.

"I just came over to see how you were and to see if there was anything I could do," Taylor explained gently, "If you wanted to talk, I'm here to listen."

Gabriella was silent for a few moments, her eyes gazing down at her lap. Finally she looked back up at Taylor,

"There's nothing to talk about Tay. She's gone and there's nothing that's going to change that," Gabriella whispered tiredly. "Could you just sit with me?" the brunette requested.

Taylor nodded, "Of course." She lifted the covers and climbed into Gabriella's bed, resuming a position identical to Gabriella's.

After more silence, Gabriella glanced at the bag Taylor had placed on Gabriella's bedside table.

"What did you bring?" she asked.

"Books, I figured a good book can cure any heartache," Taylor explained.

"The Scarlet Letter?"

"Of course," Taylor smiled.

"Would you read it aloud?" Gabriella asked.

Taylor nodded, and pulled the book out of her bag. Gabriella listened silently as Taylor began to read her favorite novel. Nathaniel Hawthorne's eloquent language calmed her and helped to soothe her aching heart.

Taylor read for hours, until her phone started ringing. It was her mother, calling her home for dinner. She squeezed Gabriella's hand,

"If you need anything call me, ok?"

Gabriella nodded, "Thank you Tay."

Taylor grabbed her bag and left Gabriella's house. The walk home wasn't long, but it was long enough that she had time to make a phone call to Troy.

She listened to the dial tone as she waited for Troy to pick up.

"_Hello?" came Troy's voice finally. _

"Hey," Taylor answered, "I'm just leaving her house."

"_How is she?" he asked. _

Taylor sighed, "It's not good Troy. She didn't want to talk about it, so I just read to her. Hopefully that helped."

"_She didn't say anything?" Troy clarified. _

Taylor shook her head, even though she knew Troy couldn't see her, "Troy, she didn't have to say anything. Her eyes gave it all away. She's hurting Troy. She's hurting really bad. This isn't going to be something we can fix in a day."

_Troy took a deep breath, "I'll go see her tonight"_

"First thing in the morning, Sharpay, Kelsi and I are going over to help her get ready for the funeral. So you can meet us at her house," Taylor explained.

"_Sounds good. I'll talk to you later Taylor."_

"Bye Troy."

* * *

As the day went on, Gabriella had still yet to leave her room. She'd spent most of the day curled up in the comfort of her bed. Now that it had gotten dark, Gabriella sat on the bench on her balcony, wrapped in a comforter, gazing up at the stars.

And for the time that she sat on her balcony, the rest of the world seemed to disappear. She didn't hear the engines of the cars or the sounds of the crickets. All she heard were her own thoughts and all she saw were the glittering stars in the dark sky. She didn't even hear Troy enter her bedroom and open her balcony doors to join her.

"I brought your favorite, Margarita Pizza," he began, presenting her with a pizza box, "I figured you haven't eaten all day."

Gabriella smiled gratefully. Now that Troy brought it up, she realized he was right. She hadn't even had a glass of water today.

Troy grinned proudly, and quickly opened the box and offered a piece to Gabriella. Though the couple ate in silence there was no awkwardness between them, only a welcomed comfort for Gabriella. As she finished her third slice she finally spoke,

"When I was really little, we used to sit outside on her porch at night. She would tell me that the stars were people looking down on their loved ones from heaven. She said that if we sat outside at night, granddad could be with us as well," Gabriella explained quietly.

"Is why you've been sitting out here?" Troy asked gently.

Gabriella nodded, "But the longer I sit out here, the sillier it seems," her voice cracked as she spoke. "Stars are just balls of hydrogen gas Troy, that's all."

"It's ok to believe that they're more than hydrogen gas," he answered.

"But I know they're not," Gabriella cried.

Troy sighed, and placed on of his hands over hers, "Sometimes we have to think less with our brains and more with our hearts. It's ok to pretend that the stars really are our loved ones looking down on us."

"But-" the brunette began, only to be cut off by her boyfriend,

"Forget the science Brie. It doesn't matter. If that's what helps you seek comfort, go with that. No one is going to judge you, I promise."

Gabriella closed her eyes and let the cool Albuquerque breeze blow through her hair. She could almost feel her grandmother's soft hands stroking her curls. But then, in the next moment, when the wind stopped blowing, that touch seemed to disappear and Gabriella was left with nothing.

She opened her eyes, and looked back up at the sky, trying to decide which star was her grandmother. She finally decided that the two stars closest together had to be her grandmother and grandfather, that they'd finally been joined together in heaven. And that was the thought that brought Gabriella some comfort. The thought that her grandmother was finally reunited with the man she loved.

"Would you think I was crazy if I said I wanted to sleep out here?" Gabriella whispered.

Troy shook his head and let Gabriella lay her head down on his lap. He let his hand gently stroke Gabriella's soft curls. He listened to her breathing, waiting for it even out.

He thought about the brunette laying in his lap. Though she hadn't cried yet, her eyes told a very different story. They were cold, distant and full of sadness. He'd seen Gabriella sob before, but he'd never seen her eyes look as dead and dull as they had just a few minutes ago. Taylor was right, Gabriella was truly depressed and there was not going to be an easy way out.

He wished there was something he could do. He hoped that there was something he could do to ease her pain. It just wasn't fair that the girl who had already been through so much, had to face this cruel loss.

As her breathing steadied, he felt her shiver a little and decided that he should bring her inside. Carefully, he maneuvered her into his arms and slowly stood up. He elbowed down the door handle and pushed the door open. Gently, he laid her down in her bed and pulled her quilt over her body. She shifted slightly as her head met her pillow, but her eyes didn't open.

Troy placed a soft kiss on her forehead and whispered words of love before he left her bedroom.

* * *

The next day, Troy knocked quietly, but firmly, on the front door. He straightened his tie as he waited for the door to open. Taylor was the one who opened the door, already dressed in her black dress.

"Sharpay and Kelsi are upstairs helping Gabriella into her dress," Taylor explained, "You know she slept outside right?"

Troy furrowed his eyebrows, "What? No she didn't. I put her in her bed when she was asleep." Troy told her. "I mean she said she wanted to sleep outside, but I didn't think she would actually _move_ outside."

"Well then she moved in her sleep, because when we got here, she was curled up on her bench with a blanket," Taylor explained.

"Was she ok?" Troy asked quickly.

"She was fine," Taylor assured him, "We gave her a little bit of TLC, because it was clear she hadn't spent much time out of bed in the past few days."

"Has she said anything to you?" Troy asked, "about how she's feeling about the whole thing?"

Taylor shook her head, "She hasn't really been saying much at all. When she's ready to talk about it, she will."

Troy sighed, "I know."

Taylor reached over to rub Troy's arm in reassurance. After a few moments of silence, Taylor spoke,

"Maria, Lucas and Lily have already gone ahead, so we'll just wait for Gabriella and then go."

Troy nodded.

"Do you want some water or anything?" Taylor asked.

Troy shook his head, "I'm good. I'll just wait."

"I'll go see how they're getting on," Taylor told him, before she dashed up the stairs.

A few moments later the four girls were making their way down the stairs. Gabriella held tightly onto Kelsi and Sharpay's hand as they made their way down the stairs. Gabriella only looked up at Troy briefly, her eyes empty. He opened the front door, so they could make their way into his car.

* * *

Gabriella stood silently in Albuquerque Cemetery as she heard the priest speak. The kind hearted priest spoke about love and peace. He spoke about Mariana's gentle heart and how the angels would welcome her and comfort her in heaven. He spoke of Gabriella's grandfather, and how two lost souls would finally be reunited.

But Gabriella barely heard any of the priest's beautifully crafted speech. She stared blankly ahead clutching the white rose in her hand. She was lost in her own world, her own thoughts. She could still feel Mariana's cold hand; she could hear long beep of the machine as it shut up. Those were the things that kept haunting her every second or every day.

She just didn't know what to feel anymore. She was so upset, in fact she was beyond upset, she was devastated. At the same time she felt like she had to be strong, that she _couldn't_ cry in front from Lucas and Lily. After all, she was all they had left, right? But at the same time, she was so angry with Maria. She was still convinced that Maria had played a major role in Mariana's death. Although she felt guilty as well because she felt like she could have done more, she could have fought harder, Gabriella knew that Maria's decision was wrong. And for that reason, Gabriella hated Maria.

Gabriella had barely said two words to Maria since that day in the hospital. In all honesty, she'd barely said two words to anyone. That morning Sharpay, Taylor and Kelsi had been over to help her get ready, but Gabriella had just let them lead her through the motions. She had felt like she was a doll, like she hadn't had any control over her own actions. She hadn't even been able to talk about it with Troy last night.

She just felt so empty, like everything inside of her had died.

Eventually Gabriella felt Troy's hand on the small of her back. When she looked up at him, she realized that everyone was leaving the grave site.

Gabriella silently walked forward and laid her white rose on the dark wooden coffin. She let her hand touch the wood and it lingered there for a few moments before she turned back around and walked with Troy back to his car.

* * *

Later that night, Gabriella lay on her bench outside. She still had on the makeup Sharpay had put on her, but she'd swapped her black dress for a comfortable pair of sweats. Her small frame shook with sobs as the gravity of the day's events finally weighed down on her. She felt the tears stream down her cheeks while her sobs forced her to gasp for air. She looked up at the sky, at the glimmering stars and cried softly,

"Abuelita, qué debo hacer ahora?"

* * *

**A/N: Oh hey guys. So this chapter was kinda supposed to just set the mood, just to kind of set up Gabriella's feelings and her thoughts. Let me know what you though! Thank you for reading and reviewing!**


	14. Change

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters. **

**A/N: OH hey guys! Sooooo who's excited for Harry Potter 7 Part 1, this Friday? Meeeee! Haha. Enjoy…**

**

* * *

**

Chapter Fourteen – Change 

Gabriella jolted awake when she heard her name called loudly.

"Gabriella! You're going to be late!" her mother scolded. Gabriella groaned, but sat up on her balcony bench, only to be told off again, "Please don't tell me you slept out here, again."

"Sorry to disappoint," Gabriella muttered coldly, standing up.

"You really shouldn't be sleeping out here, you're going to get sick," Maria protested.

"I'm fine," Gabriella answered curtly, as she walked past her mother to get back into her room.

"I know it's been hard for you Gabriella, but I'm just trying to do what's best," Maria tried to explain gently.

Gabriella only responded with a cold look. She didn't feel like fighting, again, with her mother.

Maria sighed, "Maybe we should take you to see a psychologist, or something."

Gabriella immediately stopped her previous actions and stared at her mother,

"I lost my grandmother _a week _ago. I'm not _crazy_," the brunette spoke disdainfully.

Maria shook her head, "Just think about it," she said as she made her way across Gabriella's room, "I'm going to drive Lucas and Lily to school then head to work, Troy should be here soon, right?"

Gabriella nodded, even though she knew Troy had basketball practice on Monday mornings, so he wouldn't be coming to pick her up. A nice walk to school would do her good.

Gabriella listened as Maria's heels clicked down the hallway and then the front door opened and slammed shut. Gabriella sighed and made her way into her bathroom.

She stared at her reflection in the mirror, her tired eyes staring right back her. It had been a week since Mariana had died, and Gabriella wasn't doing much better. She'd fallen asleep crying outside every night since that night with Troy. She'd gone back to school on Thursday, last week. Somehow, she found school helped because it gave her _something _to do. Something else to focus on, other than the pain of a knife in her heart.

As she felt the floodgates begin to open, she quickly splashed the cold water of the tap on her face.

* * *

Troy watched as Gabriella walked into Ms. Darbus' homeroom five minutes late, again. Ms. Darbus gave Gabriella a mindful look, but she didn't say anything. Troy had told the teacher about what had happened with Mariana and Ms. Darbus had been surprisingly understanding.

The blank stare Gabriella's eyes held, wasn't a new sight for Troy this week. Her gorgeous brown orbs had lost their usual sparkle and her skin looked paler. Troy was sure she'd lost weight because she felt smaller when he wrapped his arms around her. But what struck him more were the emotional differences he saw in Gabriella. Though she was working harder than ever at her school work, she didn't seem bothered that she had arrived to class late. Moreover, he was sure he hadn't seen her smile or heard her laugh in days. He thought back to the conversation he'd had with Mariana the night before her death. She had been right and something had to be done.

Later that school day, Troy found Gabriella pulling books from her locker. He watched her for a second, until the books she was pulling from her locker suddenly came crashing down onto the floor. Immediately, Troy rushed over to help his girlfriend with the scattered books. By the time he reached her, Gabriella was on the floor frantically gathering her books and muttering to herself.

Troy crouched down next to her and placed his hand on her back,

"You alright?" he asked, quickly doing a once over for injuries, as he began to help her collect her books. Gabriella nodded. Troy stacked her books and then stood up as she did. Running her fingers through her hair, Gabriella tried to explain exasperatedly,

"I've been so clumsy lately, I just, I don't know what happened, all the books just fell, and, I don't know…" she babbled.

"Hey," Troy said softly, "it's fine. You don't have anything to be sorry about," he assured her. "Now, which ones do you actually need?" he asked.

"Calc and bio," Gabriella answered softly. Troy handed his girlfriend the proper books and while she put them into her bag, he reached over her to place the rest on the top shelf of her locker.

Gabriella lifted her bag, and then shut her locker before she started to walk next to Troy.

"So I was thinking that you could come over to my house," Troy suggested. He knew she'd been arguing with her mother at home. He figured it would probably do Gabriella some good to spend some time away from her mother. Plus, he'd get more time with her, which was always a bonus.

"I'd like that," Gabriella answered.

* * *

Gabriella and Troy sat on Troy's bed, sharing a big bowl of popcorn and working on calculus homework together. Troy asked so many questions that the homework ended up taking three times as long as it should have, but Gabriella didn't mind at all. In fact, the longer homework took the better, it allowed her less time to think about other things.

Finally, Gabriella closed her textbook and shut her notebook, laying her pencil on top. She sighed contently.

"What do you have left to do?" Troy asked.

"Some English reading and a few bio questions," Gabriella answered, "what about you?"

"Eh, this psych worksheet and some history notes," Troy shrugged as he reached for his psychology homework. At the same time, Gabriella pulled her biology binder out of her bag and started to read over her notes.

Troy watched Gabriella as she reread her notes. He thought about the girl who was sitting on his bed, grabbing a handful of popcorn to munch on every so often. He knew she couldn't resist popcorn and he'd even resisted eating some himself, to make sure that she at least got _some_ food into her. He wasn't entirely sure how much she'd been eating, and he was worried that she hadn't been eating enough.

Then there was the whole matter that she'd barely been saying anything. Not only about her grandmother, just in general. She wasn't her bubbly self at lunch anymore. He wasn't the only one who noticed the change in Gabriella, the whole gang had. Most of them wanted to give Gabriella more time to adjust, they were sure things would get better. The problem Troy saw was that if things hadn't gotten better over the past few days, how were they going to get better over the coming weeks? He just didn't want to see Gabriella to fall into a deep depression that even he couldn't pull her out of.

Gabriella looked up at Troy, suddenly, with confused eyes,

"What?" she asked shyly.

"Nothing," Troy insisted.

"You were staring," she pointed out.

"Am I not allowed to stare?" Troy asked playfully.

Gabriella smiled bashfully, though she knew he'd been worrying about her. She wasn't blind, she'd seen Troy's worried looks. She decided to get right to the point,

"You were doing your worried stare," Gabriella pointed out.

Troy's eyes softened, "I am worried," he admitted, " I'm worried about how you're coping," he whispered.

Gabriella sighed and shrugged, "I don't know."

"Brie," Troy coaxed, "Please talk to me."

Gabriella looked down at her hands, playing with her fingers nervously,

"I just, I don't know what to do anymore. I'm feel upset all the time, I'm always arguing with Maria and I just don't what I'm supposed to do," Gabriella exasperated, tears welling up in her eyes.

Troy moved closer to his girlfriend, and gently let his thumb run over her cheek.

"It's ok to be confused, Gabriella. Things are going to get easier."

"She wants me to see a shrink," Gabriella whispered shamefully.

"What?" Troy seemed shocked.

"That's just what she said. Like she thinks I'm crazy or something for missing my grandmother. Just because she can get over it so quickly, doesn't mean I can," Gabriella threw her hands in the air.

"You're not crazy Gabriella," Troy assured her, "but I just want to make sure you know that it's ok to move on, it ok to feel happy again."

Gabriella nodded, but stared down at her lap. She felt the tears welling up inside her eyes and tried to blink them back. She looked back up at Troy with tear filled eyes,

"She wasn't supposed to die Troy. She was supposed to make it. She should have had more time. She could have been ok, but Maria killed her. She killed mi abuela and I didn't do anything to stop her," the brunette cried.

"Hey, hey, hey," Troy soothed, wiping Gabriella's tears away with his thumb, "What happened was not your fault. Ok? You did everything you could."

The brunette looked away from Troy,

"Every day I wake up and I want to fall back asleep. I look at Maria all I can think about is how much I _hate_ her. I look at Lucas and Lily and all I see is how I failed them," Gabriella's voice cracked, " All I can think about is that I'm never going to see my grandma again," she looked back up at Troy will tears running down her face, "It hurts so bad and I don't know how to make the pain go away."

Troy pulled his girlfriend into his arms. Her head fell on his chest as her body shook as she cried silently. He rubbed her back, trying to sooth her. Though he hated to see her cry more than anything in the world, he was happy that she'd finally opened up to him.

As her tears eased, she picked herself up from Troy's chest and began furiously wiping her tears away.

"God, I'm such a mess," she muttered, pulling her hair to cover her face.

"Hey," Troy whispered, pushing Gabriella's mocha curls out of her face, "I think I'd be concerned if you weren't a mess right now. You've had to deal with a lot this week, it's ok that you're upset. You know that right?"

"I just, I don't want to be upset. Everything was going to great, then everything went wrong and now I'm back to the way I spent half my childhood feeling," Gabriella explained quietly.

"This time, Brie, the feeling isn't going to last. I promise," Troy assured her.

"How do you know that?" Gabriella asked him.

"Because, I'm here this time. And I'm on your side," Troy answered seriously.

"Promise?"

"I promise."

Gabriella smiled and leaned up to kiss Troy, "Thank you," she whispered.

* * *

Later that evening, Gabriella pushed her key into the front door lock and opened the door. She dropped her bag at the bottom of the stairs before she walked through the hallway to the kitchen. Just after she reached up to grab a glass from the cabinet, Maria spoke,

"You were out longer than I thought you would be."

"Sorry?" Gabriella apologized, though she wasn't really sure an apology was in order.

"Just try to be home for dinner, I'm trying to make it so we all that dinner together," Maria explained.

"Excuse me?" This was coming from the woman who was _never_ usually home for dinner.

"I've been coming home from work early so we can dinner together. I would appreciate it if you did the same," Maria answered.

"Are you kidding me? I'm not here _one_ night and suddenly I'm the bad guy!" Gabriella exclaimed frustration evident in her tone.

"It's not just the dinner Gabriella you've been so distant lately. It's like you're not here anymore."

"I'm trying to get through this!"

"Maybe it's time you work a little harder," Maria responded coldly, before she threw the dish towel she held and walked out of the room.

Gabriella stared blankly at the glass she had in her hand. She could barely understand what had just happened. How dare her mother yell at her for something she had been so notorious for. She could feel herself shaking with anger and suddenly the glass she was holding was shattered on the floor. Gabriella felt her legs give out under her as she slide down the cabinet, tears immediately rolling down her face.

As she sat in tears, surrounded by glass she wondered what had happened to her.

Where had the girl whose life had _finally_ turned around gone? And how could she get her back?

* * *

**A/N: What do you think? Yay? Nay? Let me know! Thank you so much for reading and reviewing!**


	15. Something Had to be Done

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters. **

**A/N: Oh hey guys….remember me? Hopefully :D I hope everyone had a great Christmas and you guys are all enjoying your breaks from school! Enjoy….**

**

* * *

**

Chapter Fifteen – Something Had to be Done 

The gang chatted in the noisy lunch room. Lunch times at East High were always buzzing with excitement. The whole school seemed to be on a high during these 45 minutes because students didn't have to stress about school.

Everyone was chatty and happy, except Gabriella, who sat quietly at the table. She was exhausted. She'd had a cold for the past two weeks and hadn't been sleeping well. On top of that she was stressed about school, as always, and at home she was in a perpetual state of stress. Tensions with her mother had reached an all time high. She and Maria argued about almost everything and it seemed like they would never get on. She now made a conscious effort not to speak at home to prevent the yelling. Because, in all honesty, she was so sick of being yelled at and being put down.

She could feel her head pounding as her throbbing headache raged on. When her head finally felt like it was about to explode she decided it was time to get out of the loud room.

She placed her hand on Troy's upper arm to get his attention before she moved closer to him. He turned his head toward her as she spoke quietly into his ear.

"I have a really bad headache, I'm going to go lie down in the roof top garden," Gabriella whispered.

Troy looked concerned, "Are you sure you don't just want to go home?"

Gabriella shook her head, "'Yes. I'll be fine. I just need to lie down."

"Do you want me to come with you?" he asked.

"No, you should stay here. I'll be fine," Gabriella assured him as she started to stand up.

"You know if you want to go home, I'll take you," Troy reminded her.

Gabriella nodded, "I know," she leaned to kiss him on the cheek, "I'm fine."

Troy watched as Gabriella walked away. He actually kind of felt better that she was going to lie down. She'd been sick for what seemed like forever and Troy was happy to see her take the time to take care of herself (at least as much as she would, this was Gabriella he was talking about). Maybe he'd try to convince her she should stay home tomorrow, you know, have a recovery day. He'd definitely have to work on that, he decided as Taylor pulled him out of his thoughts,

"Is Gabi going to the nurse?" she asked, hopefully.

Troy shook his head, "No, but she's going to lie down, so that's a start."

"Well you know where she should be lying down? At home, in her bed, with warm chicken noodle soup," Kelsi pointed out.

Sharpay nodded, "Kelsi's right, she's been sick _forever" _

"No, what she really needs is a break from all the stress. That's what's making her sick. Trust me, I know. The same thing happened to me last year," Taylor explained.

"Dude! I remember that! It was around AP exams and SATs and ACTs!" Chad exclaimed. "It was bad man, she was sick and always in a pissy mood. I'm telling you, these girls get crazy with stress."

"But we're seniors. Life is so chill right now," Jason pointed out to the gang.

"Unless you're applying to college," Ryan reminded Jason.

"Yeah, but didn't Gabs finish her college apps like three months ago?" Zeke questioned.

Taylor nodded, "Yeah she even finished hers before I finished mine."

"Guys, it's her mom. It has to be her mom," Troy reasoned. He knew he was right, it didn't make sense for it to be anything else.

"You're so right," Taylor agreed, "She was telling me about that the other day. She said they just argue all the time."

"I thought she wasn't talking to her mother?" Zeke questioned.

"She tries not to, but her mother always seems to talk to her and then they just end up arguing," Troy explains.

"Well what are they arguing about?" Chad asked.

"Everything. Maria gets upset with Gabriella for working too much or not working enough. Not spending enough time at home, not talking to her enough, the list goes on," Troy told them.

"Not to mention, Gabriella is still grieving over her grandmother," Taylor reminded her.

"Still?" Sharpay clarified.

Taylor nodded, "I don't blame her though. She was so close with her grandmother and then to have her taken away so suddenly…I can't imagine the grief Gabriella must be feeling," she explained.

"That doesn't mean that she shouldn't work through it," Sharpay reminded her, "Gabriella can't just live her life in perpetual sadness."

"It's only been two months, it's not like Gabriella's random great aunt Jemima died at a 109. Mariana died suddenly and let's not forget the fact that Maria practically pulled plug on her own mother!" Taylor defended fiercely. Her voice then softened, "What Gabriella needs right now, is our love and support."

* * *

Troy quietly walked up the stairs to the rooftop garden. Gabriella hadn't appeared in her next period, so Troy decided he would go check on her to make sure she was alright. As climbed the last stair and rounded the corner, he could hear Gabriella's steady breaths. Eventually, he saw his girlfriend curled up on the bench, sleeping. He quietly made his way over and knelt down beside her. Her face was covered by her luscious curls, so he carefully pushed them behind her ear. He marveled at the serenity on her face. It broke his heart that he knew he was going to have to wake her up. She couldn't just sleep here for the rest of the day. On top of that, he knew she'd be frazzled that she'd missed class, after all, this was Gabriella he was talking about.

"Brie," he whispered, "Brie, babe, it's time to wake up."

Gabriella's eyes scrunched closed before they squinted open, "Mmmmmmm," she groaned, "I think I'll just stay here."

Troy chuckled, "Your back is going to hurt later from sleeping on this bench."

"I don't care" Gabriella muttered, closing her eyes again.

"You know you've already missed one class, right babe?" Troy told her gently.

Gabriella just shrugged.

"Come on Brie, you really should get up," Troy coaxed. Gabriella opened her eyes again,

"Troy, for once in my life, I just want to stay here. I'm really tired and I just want to sleep for a little bit," Gabriella spoke firmly, with a hint of anger in her tone.

Troy was slightly taken aback. It wasn't like Gabriella at all to choose sleep over school. She must really be tired, he realized. Maybe he should just let her be. He kissed her cheek gently before he stood up and started to walk back downstairs.

"Troy?" came Gabriella's tried voice. Troy turned around.

"I love you" she whispered.

Troy smiled, "I love you too, Brie. I'll come get you afterschool."

As Troy walked back down the stairs, it really hit him that Gabriella's conflict at home was causing serious problems. He'd seen Gabriella stay up all night and still be in school the next day. The fact that she was too exhausted to care that she was missing school made Troy wonder how little sleep she was getting. And that worried him. He really did need to put his foot down and do something before it was too late.

* * *

Troy walked up to the front door. His heart was still toying with the idea of what he was about to do. He knew that if Gabriella found out, she'd be upset, but at the same time something _had _to be done. He could see Gabriella was broken inside and he was sick and tired of waiting around for it to fix itself. He'd made promise to Mariana. The night before her surgery, he'd promised her that he would take care of Gabriella, that he would help her through any difficult times the best way he knew how.

He had decided that this was his last resort. This was the only way to make things better for Gabriella. He rang the doorbell and waited for the door to open. When the front door did open and Maria appeared in the doorway, she looked slightly surprised to see Troy.

"Hello Troy," Maria greeted.

"Hi Ms. Ortiz," Troy smiled.

"Gabriella is at work, you know," she reminded him. "It's just me here."

"I know. That's actually why I stopped by," Troy answered, scratching the back of his neck, "I was hoping I could talk to you.

Maria looked shocked, "Ok, come on in." she stepped aside, so that Troy could walk into the house. She shut the door behind herself and the led Troy into the kitchen. Once they were both situated, Troy decided, he should probably be the first to say something.

"I came here because I want to talk to you about Gabriella," Troy explained.

Maria nodded, but didn't say anything. She was waiting to see what Troy had to say first.

"I'm worried about her and I think you're the only person who can help," Troy said.

Maria was surprised. _She_ was the only person who could help. Well, she certainly had not been expecting that.

"If you let me know how you think I can help, I certainly will because I'd like to get back on speaking terms with her," Maria answered.

"Do you know what happened after you left? Do you know why your children have been living with their grandchildren?" Troy asked seriously. This was the root of the problem. If Maria couldn't get some forgiveness from Gabriella, tensions were never going to die down.

Maria shook her head, "I don't know exactly what happened, but I assume he left as well. I mean, no one ever said anything."

"And you didn't think to bring it up?" Troy questioned.

"I could never find the right time to ask. It seems like a touchy subject."

Troy took a deep breath, "You should probably know what happened," he began, leaning forward slightly. "After you left, Tomas blamed Gabriella for what you had done. So to punish her, he started abusing her. Gabriella doesn't like to talk about it, but I know that every day she lived in fear and pain for 10 years. Finally, she ran away with Lucas and Lily. They came here and for a while they lived in peace, but then he came back and took them away. Back here, we did some digging until we found out where he'd taken them and we found someone who could help them, Mariana. We called her, she flew to North Carolina and after a law suit, Tomas was put behind bars. Even though he's gone, Maria, Gabriella lives with the scars he gave him."

With tears in her eyes, Maria whispered, "I never meant for anything like that to happen. Why didn't she say anything earlier?"

Troy placed his hand over Maria's, to try and comfort her. "Gabriella keeps a wall around her, she doesn't want to expose old wounds."

"I wouldn't have gone if I'd known he would do that," Maria whispered, a guilty tear leaking from her eye.

"Now that you know, you can help heal some of those wounds," Troy tried to assure her, "Gabriella needs to trust you. She needs to learn that you're not going to up and leave again. Gabriella didn't just lose her father, she lost her mother. Now that she's lost her grandmother, you're the only person she has to look up to. You can help repair the old wounds."

"Are you sure?" Maria asked.

"Yes, I want to help you. I want to make things right, whatever it takes," Troy spoke firmly and deliberately. As he looked at Maria, waiting for her response, her eyes suddenly grew wide. Troy turned his head to see what was wrong. It was then that his eyes made contact with Gabriella's angry ones.

"Brie, I can explain," Troy stammered desperately.

"Oh I bet you can," Gabriella answered coldly, before she stormed off in the other direction. Troy caught up to her on the stairs,

"Please just listen to me," he begged, "I was trying to help you, to make things better."

"You _promised_ me you were on my side," Gabriella reminded him, "You _promised."_

"I am on your side!" Troy tried to assure her.

"Hell of a way to show it Troy! Going to talk to her!" Gabriella replied bitterly as she turned and continued up the stairs.

Troy yelled after her, "Gabriella! Wait!"

Gabriella stopped just outside her room before she turned to look at Troy, "I would expect something like this from _her_ Troy, but not from you," her voice got quiet, "Not from you Troy."

"Gabriella, please, you have to understand, I was only trying to help," Troy tried desperately to convince her.

"Just go Troy. If you really want to help me, just go"

"Brie," Troy whispered desperately.

"Just go," Gabriella murmured as she slipped into her room. She shut the door behind her, leaned her back against it, and then slid down it, finally letting her tears of frustration and betrayal fall.

Outside the door Troy cursed himself as she her Gabriella's muffled sobs. He clenched his fists, but eventually decided to turn around a quietly leave the Montez house.

* * *

**A/N: Ooooooooooo. Hope that was worth the wait :D I hope everyone has a lovely New Year's! Questions? Comments? Concerns? Review!**


	16. Broken

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters. **

**A/N: I know a lot of you are upset about Troyella right now. Please bear with me. I DO have a plan :D Enjoy….**

**

* * *

**

Chapter Sixteen –Broken

After a night of absolutely no sleep, Troy was on his way over to Gabriella's house to try and make amends. He couldn't stand the thought of Gabriella being angry with him. He wanted to make things right between them. He had to.

He made his way round to the back of the Montez's house and pulled himself up onto the balcony. He crossed the balcony and tried to push down the handle, but it wouldn't move.

It was locked.

He furrowed his eyebrows and peered through the glass of the balcony doors. He saw Gabriella sitting on her bed, with her eyes glued to the pages of a book. He knocked on the door and Gabriella looked up at him. Their eyes locked, then Gabriella looked down at her book again.

Troy nearly slammed his head through the glass door in frustration. He'd been nagging her to get a lock on her door for _months_ and when he finally really, REALLY needed to get into her room, she'd gotten the lock.

He pulled out his cell phone and quickly dialed Gabriella's number. He watched Gabriella reluctantly pick up her phone.

"What do you want Troy?" Gabriella asked coldly.

"I just want to talk about what happened," Troy began.

"There's not much to talk about," Gabriella answered.

"There's everything to talk about," Troy replied quickly.

"I've only ever asked you to do one thing for me Troy, I asked you to stay on my side. And you promised me that you would be," Gabriella spoke deliberately.

"But what you have to understand is that I _am _on your side," Troy assured her.

"Then explain to me why you would go to _her_, and tell her that you wanted to help _her_," Gabriella demanded, "Because I can't see how that means you're on my side."

"I was only trying to talk to her to try and make things right between the two of you," Troy tried to reason.

"And you didn't think to talk to _me_ first?"

"I've tried that Gabriella, but you never seen to want to talk, this seemed like the only way."

"So now it's _my_ fault?" Gabriella cried, throwing her hands in the air and quickly moving to the other side of the room.

"No, no, no! I just meant…"

Gabriella shook her head, "I trusted you Troy, I trusted you to keep your promise, and you didn't," she said bitterly "Just go."

"Wait," Troy pleaded.

"Troy, please, just leave me alone. I did what you asked, I had a lock installed. Owen did it for me this morning. Now please do something for me, just go."

With that, Gabriella hung up the phone, and shut the curtains over her balcony door.

Troy clenched his phone in his hand.

_Dammit._

_

* * *

_

Gabriella sank down the base of her bed and her head fell back, hitting the baseboard. She felt sick. Of all the people who had betrayed her, she never expected Troy to be one of them. He had _promised_ her that he would be on _her_ side, that he would _always _support her.

She ripped her necklace from around her neck and through it across the room. Troy's ring was supposed to be a symbol of trust and love, but now it only reminded Gabriella of his betrayal.

How dare he go to Maria? To the _one_ person she hated. Who was he to think that he could make a promise to her and then break it? Then he had the audacity to tell her that he was only trying to help her?

She'd heard that lie before, twice. When he mother deserted them, it had been "to help them." When her father beat her until she bled, it had been "to help her learn her place." And now when Troy had agreed to help her mother, it had been "to help Gabriella."

But she'd learned. She'd learned that it was all a lie. A cover up for the true cruelty. Her mother had left because she was selfish. Her father had unfairly taken out his anger on her. And now Troy had betrayed her. He had hurt her, intentionally. He knew how she felt about Maria, and he had used it against her.

She had been wrong to trust him, to open up to him. To think that anyone could ever love her the way she had loved Troy. Like almost everyone else she had ever loved, he had left her. And now her heart was in pieces and she couldn't breathe. She put her head in her hands and let sobs rack her body. The painful sobs radiated through her core and her heart ached more with each strained breath.

An hour later, Gabriella sat on her bed, reading. Reading was her way of getting away from the world. By reading, Gabriella could leave this world and venture into another far away. As she let her mind wander, there was a knock at her room. Gabriella ignored it, she refused to come out of alternate reality she'd been reading about.

The door opened and Gabriella looked up to see who was at the door. When her eyes met Maria's she closed her book and stood up.

"I'm really not in the mood, Maria" Gabriella told her.

Maria continued to walk into the room anyway, "Gabriella, I know you're upset, but Troy was only trying to help you."

Gabriella responded with silence and a cold stare.

"He told me about what happened with your father," Maria continued, "I never intended for him to react like that."

"Well he did," Gabriella answered curtly, "How did you expect him to react? With rainbows and puppies?"

"Gabriella, I really am truly sorry," Maria apologized, "I'm so sorry."

"No. I don't want your sympathy. I don't want your pity. Because they don't heal scars. What heals scars is building trust and finding love. You've done neither of those. And now you've pulled Troy with you. So just please, just leave me alone," Gabriella begged, as she pointed to the door.

Maria didn't say anything, but she listened to Gabriella and slowly turned about and left the room.

* * *

At about 6:30, Gabriella's phone started to ring. At first she didn't even glance at it. It was probably Troy and she certainly did not want to speak to him. But then the phone rang again. She pulled her eyes away from her book and glanced at the caller ID. It was Sharpay and Gabriella knew as well as anyone did that you better answer Sharpay Evans calls.

"Hi Shar," Gabriella answered the phone.

"Where the hell are you Gabi? You should have been here an hour ago!" Sharpay exclaimed.

"Excuse me?" Gabriella questioned.

"Hello, our chick flick movie night, ring a bell?" Sharpay reminded her.

Gabriella mentally slapped herself. How could she forget that? "Shar, I'm so so sorry. I totally forgot. I'll be there as soon as I can," she assured her friend. Some time out of the house would do her good.

"Perfect!" Sharpay exclaimed.

20 minutes later, Gabriella was knocking on Sharpay's front door. Eventually, the door opened and Gabriella was quickly ushered in with hugs from her friends.

"Gabi I can't believe you forgot!" Sharpay joked, "That's so unlike you."

Gabriella feigned laugh. The truth was she'd been so upset that she had honestly forgotten. Sharpay, Taylor and Kelsi didn't seem to notice, however, they were much too excited.

"So I'm thinking we should start with A Walk to Remember and then move onto the Notebook and then maybe Pride and Prejudice," Taylor suggested.

Gabriella smiled, "That sounds perfect,"

"Let's get started then!" Sharpay clapped her hands together and started to lead her friends to her movie room. The girls quickly followed after their friend.

When they arrived in the movie room, Sharpay started to set up the DVD player, while Gabriella took off her jacket and hung it on the coat rack in the corner of the room. She made her way over to Sharpay to see if there was anything she could help with.

"Well, you could," Sharpay began before she noticed that something was glaringly missing, "Oh my god! Gabriella what happened?" she exclaimed.

"What happened with what?" Gabriella asked, furrowing her eyebrows.

"Troy's ring! You _always_ have it around your neck, and it's gone!"

_Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Damn Sharpay and her attention to detail. _

"I lost it. I put it on my bedside table last night and it wasn't there this morning," Gabriella tried to lie.

"Oh no, don't you dare lie to us Gabriella," Sharpay accused. She could see right through her friend.

"I –" Gabriella stammered. Where was she even going to start? How could she tell them? What if they chose _her_ side as well? Then she'd really have no one left.

"Gabriella," Taylor whispered, "what happened?"

Gabriella shook her head and backed up until she could sit down in one of the large chairs. Taylor and Kelsi shared one of the seats beside her, while Sharpay took on the one on the other side.

"You can tell us, you know you can," Kelsi assured her.

Gabriella squeezed her eyes shut and then opened them again. Her friends were not going to let up.

"Sophie let me off of work a little early and when I came home, I heard talking in the kitchen. At first I ignored it, but then I could have sworn I heard Troy's voice. So, I went to see and sure enough Troy was there, but he was talking to _her," _Gabriella explained bitterly.

"Wait, Gabi, are you sure?" Taylor questioned.

Gabriella nodded, "He said he want to _help her. _He said that he would be on her side. But he promised me that he would always be on my side and then he betrayed me! I should never have trusted him," she cried.

"Oh Gabriella," Kelsi consoled, rubbing her back as Gabriella burst into tears.

Gabriella sniffled and look up at her friends, "What's wrong with me? Everyone I love leaves me." And with that Gabriella, she dissolved into tears again.

"No, no, no, Gabriella, we're here. We love you and we're not going anywhere," Taylor assured her.

Gabriella shook her head.

"Listen to me Gabriella, there is nothing wrong with you. You are the best thing that could ever happen to anyone. And whoever doesn't see that is an idiot," Sharpay told Gabriella sternly.

Gabriella looked up at her friends. Their eyes were kind and their words were reassuring. Part of her didn't think she could trust them, but a bigger part of her needed to. She needed at least a few people to support her.

Taylor took Gabriella's hand, "Girlfriends always have your back, Gabriella. No matter what," she promised.

Gabriella squeezed her friend's hand back, "Thank you for supporting me."

"Always," Kelsi whispered.

"I think we need a slight change in plans. We don't need any more tears, so I think we should watch Disney classics. Who's up for The Little Mermaid and Pocahontas?"

Gabriella smiled, it had been the right idea to come here.

* * *

**A/N: Hope you all liked this! More excitement to come next chapter! Please review!**


	17. Silence

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters. **

**A/N: Heyy guys. Remember me? I really am sorry that I've been such a bad updater. I'm working on it! Enjoy…**

**

* * *

**

Chapter Seventeen – Silence

Taylor and Kelsi left later that evening. They both were busy Sunday morning and couldn't stay the night with Sharpay and Gabriella. The pair had agreed to carpool home, and were thankful that had after the night's interesting events.

"We need to call Troy," Taylor announced.

"Agreed," Kelsi nodded, pulling out her cell phone.

She dialed Troy's number and then put the phone on speaker so that Taylor could listen in as well.

"_Hello?" Troy answered. _

"Hi Troy," Kelsi replied.

"I'm here too," Taylor interjected.

"_Hi guys," Troy greeted, "What's up?"_

"Troy Bolton, don't you play dumb with us," Taylor began, getting straight to the point, "What happened with you and Gabi?"

_Troy sighed, "What do you know?"_

"Gabriella said that she saw you talking with Maria. That you were making a deal with her to be on her side," Kelsi explained.

"_I only went to talk to Maria to try and explain to her how she can help Gabriella," Troy explained. _

"Troy, Gabriella is really upset," Kelsi explained gently.

"_I know," Troy sighed, "I tried to get her to see that I was still on her side, but she won't believe me."_

"Troy, do you remember what I said on Friday?" Taylor asked, "Gabriella needed us to be there for her."

"_I was being there for her Taylor!" Troy argued, "She just can't see that."_

"Gabriella's grandmother died 2 months ago. She's still grieving and overly emotional. She just needed you to be there for her, not go behind her back and take her mother's side. Because now she thinks that there is something wrong with her because everyone she has loved is turning away from her," Taylor explained heatedly.

"_But she knows how much I love her," Troy rebutted back. _

"Not anymore Troy," Kelsi told him gently.

There was a long pause on the phone as Taylor and Kelsi waited for Troy to reply. They knew Kelsi's words had hit him hard.

"_What am I going to do?" he whispered. _

"Just give her a little time. She'll come around," Kelsi tried to assure him.

"_And if she doesn't?" _

"Don't think about that Troy," Kelsi told him.

_Troy sighed, "I have to go. I'll see you guys later." _

"Bye Troy."

"_Bye."_

The phone went dead and Kelsi quickly closed it.

"He's really upset," she stated.

"But so is Gabriella," Taylor reminded her friend.

Kelsi sighed, "I feel like Gabriella needs Troy though. She needs someone to support her."

"You're right. She does need someone. Right now, she needs _us. _We're going to have to be there for her. We can't let her down now." Taylor stated firmly.

* * *

Troy flopped down on his bed and ran his hands through his hair in frustration. What the hell had he done?

Gabriella was furious with him. He'd seen Gabriella's eyes and he had never seen them filled with so much hate and anger. He hadn't meant for anything like this to happen. Gabriella wasn't supposed to find out. She was supposed to be feeling better right now, she was supposed to be making peace with her mother. Instead, she was angrier with her mother and upset with him.

How was he going to fix this? She was barely speaking with him.

He'd have to wait until Monday. Yeah. He'd give her a few days to cool off, then on Monday he'd try to talk to her, he'd try to, no, he _would,_ fix things.

* * *

Troy watched as Gabriella approached her locker. She shrugged her jacket off and put it in her locker. Troy figured this was his chance to talk to her; they had a few minutes before school started and she would be alone. He made his way over and stood next to her locker,

"Hey," he greeted.

Gabriella didn't even look at him, she just continued putting her books away.

"Gabriella please, come on, please just talk to me," Troy pleaded.

"I don't want to talk to you Troy," Gabriella answered.

"Just give me a chance to explain."

Gabriella pulled a few books out of her locker and put them into her back, "You lost your chance."

"At least look at me," Troy asked.

Gabriella slammed her locker shut and looked up at him with cold eyes, "Stay away from me." She turned and walked down the hallway, ducking into the girl's bathroom.

Troy turned toward the lockers, supporting his weight with his two hands. He hit the locker with one of his hands in frustration.

"Dammit" he cursed.

Chad made his way over to his best friend, "Hey man, girl drama?"

"Gabriella's not speaking to me," Troy answered, turning around to face his friend.

"Woah," Chad held up his hand, "What happened?"

"She saw me talking with her mom," Troy sighed, "I figured Brie would be at work, but she came home early and saw us. I was only trying to get Maria to understand Brie's point of view. But not she thinking that I'm not her mother's side," he explained.

"Oh man, how long do you think she'll keep this up?"

Troy shook his head and the two walked down the hallway, "I don't know man, she's pretty pissed. She literally will not talk to me."

"Jeez, that doesn't even sound like Gabs," Chad sighed.

"Wait, why don't you talk to her," Troy suggested.

"And since when does Gabriella listen to me?" Chad pointed out, "I mean, of course I'll give it a shot, but seriously."

Troy gritted his teeth, "This is true, but it's worth a shot."

"I'll give it a shot, man," Chad assured him, "But I'm not promising anything."

"Thanks."

The two friends walked into homeroom and quickly found Jason and Zeke. They immediately jumped into the college basketball game last night.

* * *

Gabriella stood in front of the mirror in the girl's bathroom. She was alone in the silent room and all she could hear were her own thoughts. She stared blankly at herself. She still could not understand what was wrong with her. What had she done to deserve everyone's rejection? It had to be her fault. There had to be something terribly wrong with her.

Taylor, Sharpay and Kelsi had tried to convince her otherwise. She wanted to believe them, she really did. In fact, she had believed them at first. But as she continued you stare at herself in the mirror all she could see what failure in her cold brown eyes.

She heard the five minute bell ring and for a second she contemplated just staying in the bathroom because in all honesty just looking at Troy now reminded her of not only the pain from her past but also her new found hurt. She decided that missing class would only make her life more because surely Taylor would come questioning.

She took a deep breath and took one last look in the mirror before she walked back out into the busy and loud hallway.

* * *

Troy watched Gabriella in history class. He sat towards the back, while she sat in the front row. Usually she peak over her shoulder and they'd share a stolen glance. Usually she sat up straight and was ready to answer any question Mr. Miller threw at her. But today, Gabriella had barely taken any notes. She sat back in her chair, with her notebook open and her pen in her hand but she hadn't written anything down. She was twirling the pen around and taking the cap on and off.

He knew it was partially his fault that she was so upset, but he also knew that she was still troubled over her mother and her grandmother. He just wished that she would talk to him. That way he could be there for her. He could help her.

Chad had had absolutely no luck with Gabriella. Taylor had put him in his place as soon as they had exited homeroom. Chad hadn't even had the chance to say two words to Gabriella before Taylor had warned Chad away from the idea.

It seemed like the only way Troy was going to make things better with Gabriella was if he spoke with Taylor first. Maybe he could get Taylor to talk to Gabriella. It seemed like Gabriella would listen to Taylor.

Troy made his way towards the Student Council room after school. He knew Taylor held weekly meetings for the board, so she would be there. He approached the room and caught Taylor just as she was about to go into the room.

"Can I talk to you for a second?" Troy asked.

Taylor nodded and led Troy slightly off to the side, "This is about Gabriella isn't it?"

"Of course. You've got to talk to her Taylor. She won't listen to me anymore."

"Of course she won't talk to you Troy, you broke her trust," she pointed out.

"I didn't mean to though!" Troy exclaimed.

"It doesn't matter, the fact is that it's done."

"But the point is, that _you_ can tell her what really happened. She'll believe you," Troy suggested.

Taylor shook her head, "Oh no."

"Why not?" Troy asked incredulously.

"Because I warned you. I told you to just be there for her. That was what she needed. But you didn't listen. You went behind her back to tried and fix things. Yes, you had the best intentions, but what Gabriella needs right now is support, not a cure. Support first, then a cure," Taylor explained firmly.

"I get that. But I don't understand why you can't just help me fix things between us so that I can be there for her again," he reasoned.

"How do you think Gabriella would react if I started agreeing with you?" Taylor asked rhetorically, "It would look like I was on your side. And guess whose side you appear to be on right now? Maria's. And look where that's gotten you," she reminded him.

"But-"

"No. I not will do anything to make Gabriella lose my trust. Because if she starts to shut me out, she'll be alone. And let me tell you Troy Bolton, I _refuse_ to let Gabriella suffer alone. I _will_ be there for her. Even if it means shutting you away from her, I am firmly on her side," Taylor told him sternly. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a meeting to run."

With that, the African American girl turned around and walked into the Student Council room, shutting the door behind her.

Troy clenched his fist together as he cursed profusely. He turned around, only to find Kelsi rounding the corner. She looked at him sadly. Troy sighed,

"How much did you hear?" he asked.

"Before all the cursing? Enough," she answered.

Troy sighed again.

"You know she's right," Kelsi told Troy carefully. "I know it's a little harsh, but Taylor is really only trying to protect Gabi."

"I suppose you believe the same thing."

Kelsi nodded, "Gabriella needs someone to trust. If we start joining your side, she'll think she's lost us all. She's really upset Troy. She was still upset about her grandmother and now she's upset about this. You've got to give her some time to figure things out."

"But I want to help," Troy told his friend.

"I know. And right now, the best way you can do that is by giving her space. It's what's she wants. It's what she needs," Kelsi explained gently. "Just give her some space Troy. She'll come around when she's ready."

Troy sighed, "Alright. Alright, I'll try. But you'll make sure she's ok, won't you?"

Kelsi placed a comforting hand on Troy's upper arm, "Of course. Of course I will."

Troy smiled sadly, "Thanks."

As Kelsi walked away from, Troy felt himself slump in frustration. It felt a little bit better to know that Kelsi would be looking out for Gabriella.

* * *

Gabriella sat at her desk furiously writing her English essay. Suddenly her mother entered the room,

"Come on, we're going to see a psychologist," she announced.

Gabriella's eyes widened, "Excuse me? I don't think so," she said, with almost a laugh.

"Well whether you like it or not, we're going. You've been moping around for weeks now. I'm sick of it. Lucas and Lily are sick of it. We're all sick of it Gabriella. So you're going to suck it up at we're going once a week until you stop being so mopy," Maria told Gabriella sternly.

Gabriella recoiled silently and stood up to follow her mother. She didn't have a comeback. She didn't have any way of refuting her mother. The 20 minute car ride to the psychologist was silent and tense. Gabriella could see Maria try to start up a conversation but Gabriella ignored her. She didn't want to talk.

The receptionist led Gabriella into a large office. There was a large window with a desk a few feet in front of it. The walls were lined with bookcases filled with antique books. In the middle of the room, there was a green couch and two green chairs facing each other. There was a small coffee table with two bowls: one with twizlers and one with pretzels.

There was a blonde woman sitting at the desk. When Gabriella and the receptionist entered her office, the woman stood up. She was wearing tan boots and a turquoise knit dress. The psychologist held her hand out to greet Gabriella,

"Lauren Sweets."

"Gabriella," the young brunette said as she shook her hand.

As the receptionist left the room, Lauren invited Gabriella to sit.

"So Gabriella, tell me about yourself. How's school?"

"It's fine," Gabriella shrugged.

Lauren nodded, "Do you work?"

"Yeah, at Borders."

"Oh," Lauren smiled, "you like to read?"

Gabriella nodded.

Lauren paused and watched the young girl play with the hem of her shirt. The girl was clearly broken, she looked uncomfortable and miserable. Her answers were short and dismissive. She didn't want to be here. If Lauren was going to help this young girl, she'd have to gain her trust first. She didn't want to push her.

"I know this is uncomfortable for you Gabriella, but I'm here to let you. I'm here to listen to anything you have to say," Lauren reminded her, "If you just want to sit here, we can. You don't have to say anything."

Gabriella looked up at her and nodded. Lauren could have sworn she saw a small smile of gratitude fall across Gabriella's face.

Gabriella leaned back in the couch and for the rest of her half hour session, Gabriella and Lauren sat in silence. And that was exactly what Gabriella wanted. Silence.

**A/N: Thank you so much for reading! Please let me know what you think!**


	18. Progress

**Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters.**

**A/N: Oh hey guys…So hopefully some of you guys are still reading this story. I am so so sorry this has taken me forever to upload. I have the rest of the story written and I'll be updating it within the week! I PROMISE! Enjoy…**

* * *

Chapter Eighteen - Progress

Over the past two weeks, not much had changed in Gabriella's life. She still couldn't bear the sight of Troy and Maria. But, while Maria had continued to pester Gabriella, Troy had seemingly given up completely. He hadn't said anything to Gabriella in two weeks. Although, admittedly, Gabriella did miss Troy's presence, she had lost all trust in him and was unable to forgive his actions.

Gabriella had been seeing Lauren twice a week for an hour each time. For the past two weeks they'd sat in silence. Gabriella still refused to say anything. She had three very simple reasons for doing so. One: She liked the peace and quiet. Two: Why should she? She didn't know this woman. Why should she tell her anything? And Three: She refused to believe that she was crazy. At first Gabriella wondered why she even came. She was big girl, she didn't _have_ to go at all. She'd very quickly realized though, that the hour spent with Lauren was one hour _less_ she had to spend with Maria.

As Gabriella sat in her chair, she thought about the term 'crazy.' The more she thought about it, the more she realized how subjective it really was. What if, while she believed she wasn't crazy, her friends and her family thought she was. And that was why they'd brought her here, because they wanted to cure the crazy Gabriella couldn't see. Gabriella shook the thoughts out of her head. No. She wasn't crazy. She was perfectly rational. Right?

"Can I ask you something?" Gabriella asked suddenly, looking up at Lauren. She couldn't help herself, she needed to know.

"Only if I get to ask you something," Lauren countered.

Gabriella paused for a second before she nodded, that seemed like a fair deal.

"Ask away," Lauren encouraged.

"How would you define crazy?"

Lauren mused for a moment, "Well that would depend on the person, now wouldn't it?"

Gabriella nodded, "Yes, but what _you_ think crazy means?"

"Crazy is simply when people act irrationally. Now, sometimes the crazy person, for lack of a better term, doesn't even know he is crazy, because he may believe he is acting rationally," Lauren explained.

The brunette nodded and then looked down in her lap. That sounded a lot like what Gabriella had been pondering just a few moments ago. She bit her lip and asked Lauren a question quietly, "Do you, um, do you think I'm crazy?" She was almost embarrassed she'd asked such a question.

Lauren shook her head, "No."

Gabriella's head snapped up, she was surprised at the response.

"I think that you're hurting, a lot" she clarified, "but certainly not crazy. Do you think you're crazy?"

Gabriella shook her head, "No. Of course not. I just. I just. Well. I…" she trailed off.

Lauren leaned forward, "It's alright Gabriella, you can tell me," she coaxed.

"I just, what's wrong with me?" Gabriella whispered, "Everyone I love leaves me."

"What do you mean?" Lauren questioned.

Gabriella paused for a moment. She wasn't entirely sure she trusted her psychologist. But Lauren had kind eyes and it not like Lauren could tell anyone else.

"My mother left us when I was ten. My father beat us. My grandmother just died. My boyfriend betrayed me. I let them all in and they all left me, some physically and others emotionally," Gabriella explained quietly, "Why me?" she whispered tearfully, "What's wrong with me?"

Lauren moved to next to the young girl on the couch. She was finally making progress, she was finally opening up.

"Why don't you tell me about what happened."

With Lauren's hand over hers, Gabriella told Lauren everything. She told her about her mother leaving, her father's violence, how she'd run away, what had happened when her father had taken them again, how her grandmother had saved them, how everything had been fine until her mother came back again, her grandmother's death and finally Troy's betrayal. The tale was long, exhausting and left Gabriella in tears. Lauren squeezed Gabriella's hand and she said,

"You've been through a lot Gabriella. More than most people go through in a lifetime. You're a little broken, but the fact that you're still standing tells me that you're strong. Stronger than you give yourself credit for. But you told me something. You said that you were getting better, but then your grandma died. What happened between you and your mother?" Lauren asked.

"Maria killed my grandmother," Gabriella told her curtly.

"Did she?" Lauren asked seriously.

"Yes," the brunette answered bluntly.

"I'm going to ask you to think about that for a minute. Go back to the day it happened. Instead of focusing on how you were feeling, I want you to look at your mother."

Gabriella stared at Lauren in disbelief. Maria had pulled the plug. She'd _killed_ Maria. She thought back to the hospital. She remembered how distraught she'd been. How devastating it had been. Regardless of how hard she tried Gabriella couldn't even remember a word Maria had said. She closed her eyes and tried to picture Maria's face. Slowly she could see Maria's face forming in her mind and she began to see the same sadness in Maria's eyes that had been in her own. Suddenly she wasn't so sure of her previous feelings.

"I think, that hate is easier than grief," Lauren spoke quietly, "you choose to hate Maria because hating is easier for you than feeling the grief."

Gabriella thought of Maria's eyes. They were just as broken as her own. In that moment she realized that Maria had been just as distraught as she had been. Then Gabriella realized that the decision Maria had been forced to make was not an easy one. And as she thought back to the doctor's words she realized the decision had been the logical one. As much as it pained Gabriella to concede, Maria had been right, Gabriella had just been too emotionally distraught to have seen it.

The young brunette let down the wall of anger she'd been keep inside her heart. As she let the wall down she felt the grief wash over her again. It hurt so badly. Gabriella squeezed her eyes shut trying desperately to stop the tears. She looked up at Lauren, revealing her glossy brown eyes,

"You're right," she whispered, "but it hurts, it hurts so bad and I don't know how to make it stop," she choked.

And that's when Gabriella broke down. Lauren rubbed the teenager's back as she sobbed and muttered incoherent words.

Gabriella felt the real grief of her grandmother's death wash over her. All the sadness she'd been holding inside finally came out as tear flooded her face. Although she was having trouble breathing, her anger, which had masking her pain, began to disappear.

She realized it hadn't been her mother's fault what had happened. Her grandmother's death was unfair and untimely Gabriella had needed someone to blame. It was wrong of her though, to blame Maria, because it wasn't her fault at all. It was no one's fault. But it was easier to lay blame on a person than the universe.

After a few minutes Gabriella looked up at the kind therapist, "How do I make the pain stop?" she asked, placing her hand over her heart.

Lauren paused for a moment before she began, "Losing someone is difficult Gabriella, there's no denying that. What we have to remember is that death is a part of everyone's life. We're born, we live a happy life and then we die. Sometimes people die earlier than seems fair, but what's important to remember is the life they _did_ live. Was it a happy life? Did they live with joy?"

"My grandmother was always a joyful woman, she always had a smile on her face."

"So whenever you feel sad or upset, I want you to think about all the happiness that your grandmother brought to your life," Lauren explained softly.

Gabriella nodded, she could do that. For the first time in what seemed like forever she was hopeful that the hole in heart would vanish.

* * *

The car ride home was silent. Gabriella kept opening her mouth, ready to say something, but she could never think of the right thing to say, so she just closed it again. She'd spent the rest of her time with Lauren realizing that she had to make things right with her mother. She needed to apologize. She had been wrong to blow up at her mother and she needed to be the one to fix it.

Finally the car pulled into their driveway. Maria turned off the engine and looked over to her daughter.

"Whatever you need to say, you can," Maria told her daughter kindly.

Gabriella looked to her mother in shock: how had she known? As if her mother could read her mind, Maria continued,

"You've opened your mouth to speak 6 times," she explained.

The younger brunette looked up to her mother, "I just – I. I Just – I wanted. I know – I just" Gabriella stuttered, not really just how to go about this. She paused for a second and then just blurted it out,

"I'm sorry."

Maria's eyes softened, "Oh Gabriella I-" the older woman began before Gabriella held up her hand.

"No, I need to. I need to finish," Gabriella cut her mother off. "I was wrong to have blamed you for what happened to abuela. I was hurting and afraid and I took it out on you. I'm sorry."

Maria took her daughter's hand in hers and squeezed it before she spoke, "Oh sweetie, I know it's been hard and I'm so sorry you've had to go through this. But I owe you an apology as well. My biggest regret was leaving you guys. I was being selfish and for that I am truly and honestly sorry. For everything that happened," Maria apologized sincerely.

Gabriella looked up at a matching pair of glossy eyes before she wrapped her arms around her mother,

"I forgive you," she whispered.

With those three words, Gabriella felt a whole weight being lifted from her shoulders. She felt as though she was finally free of all the hate. She squeezed her mother tightly before murmuring words she hadn't said in years,

"I love you, Mom."

* * *

Troy sighed as he set down his books on the kitchen table.

"Lots of school work?" Lucille Bolton asked.

Troy shrugged, "I guess." He honestly wasn't really that bothered about school anymore. He hadn't spoken to Gabriella in two weeks, and it was taking its toll on him. He was trying to give Gabriella space, like Kelsi had suggested, but he wasn't sure how much longer he could keep this up.

"You know who I haven't seen in a while?" Lucille suddenly wondered aloud as she chopped up some melon.

Troy winced mentally. He prayed Gabriella's name wasn't going to come out of his mother's mouth. He hadn't quite gotten around to telling his mother about what had happened.

"Gabriella," his mother finished, as she continued to chop the orange fruit.

Troy scratched the back of his neck nervously.

"Is everything ok between you two?" Lucille asked, getting slightly worried.

Troy couldn't even look his mother in the eye. Lucille set her knife down and came closer to her son, "Troy…"

The teenager sighed, "She's not talking to me mom. We haven't spoken in two weeks."

"What happened?" Lucille gasped.

"I went to talk to Maria behind Gabi's back. I was telling Maria that I wanted to help her get on speaking terms with Gabriella, and Gabriella walked in on us," Troy explained quietly.

"Oh Troy," Lucille sighed, "Why?"

"I was just trying to help," he defended, "Gabriella wasn't supposed to find out. She'd been so sad for weeks, this seemed like the only hope. Plus Mariana-"

"Mariana?"

"That night that Mariana was admitted to the hospital, I went because I thought Gabriella was in there. When I got there though, I found out that it was Mariana. She asked me to do something for her that night."

"What did she want you to do?" Lucille asked.

_"But before you go find her Troy, there is something I wanted to talk to you about." The older woman confessed._

_Troy nodded, and pulled a seat next to Mariana's bed._

_"I'm all ears,"_

_"It's about Gabriella." The older woman paused, "You know that she and her mother aren't on the best terms." _

_Troy nodded. _

"_And if I don't make it out of this surgery, she'll need her mother." _

"_Mariana, you can't say that," Troy insisted. _

"_Oh mijo, I'm an old woman, I'm aware of the risks, but just don't you be worrying about me, we're talking about Gabriella here, not me. Now, you know how stubborn Gabriella is, but she deserves her mother back. Maria is a good woman, she's ready to step up to the plate. But she doesn't know the whole story. Gabriella won't tell Maria what happened with her father, but Maria needs to know Troy. She needs to know why Gabriella is so broken."_

_Troy nodded, "And you want me to convince Gabi to tell Maria?"_

_Mariana shook her head, "No, I want you to tell Maria. I want you to make sure that Maria and Gabriella can rebuild their relationship." _

"_Mariana, I don't know. I'm not sure that's my place," Troy was hesitant. _

"_Troy, I just want Gabriella to be happy. Maria and Gabriella can't rebuild their relationship unless she knows why her daughter is so, so angry with her," Marian explained, "Just please, promise me." _

_Troy sighed, he knew Mariana was right. Despite his best judgment, he couldn't risk Gabriella's happiness. _

"_Ok," Troy nodded, "I promise."_

"Oh Troy," Lucille whispered, "Have you tried talking to Gabriella about this?"

"Of course I have mom, but she won't listen to me," Troy told his mother dejectedly. "You should see the way she looks at me, it's like I betrayed her. She's just so angry and so disappointed. And I'm so worried she won't forgive me."

"I know you didn't mean to hurt her honey, but maybe she just needs some space," Lucille suggested.

"That's what everyone is saying, but I don't know how long I can keep this up."

"She loves you Troy. She'll forgive you, I promise. Just give her some time," Lucille assured her son. "She just needs time."

* * *

**A/N: For those of you who are still reading, I thank you immensely! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! It's only going to get better from here! Let me hear your thoughts!**


	19. Change of Heart

**A/N: I was so glad to see that not everyone forgot about me! Thank you for all the lovely reviews you guys left me! They made me super happy! For those of you in the Northeast, enjoy this GLORIOUS weather! Enjoy…**

* * *

Chapter Nineteen – Change of Heart

A few days had passed since her time with Lauren and her conversation with her mother. Things were already looking up for Gabriella on the home front. Maria and Gabriella were working on strengthening their mother-daughter relationship and trying to make up for lost time.

That evening the Montez family was sitting outside, finishing up dinner. Suddenly Lucas piped up,

"How come Troy never comes over anymore?"

Gabriella stared at her younger brother for a few moments, had she really never told them? Obviously not.

"Troy and I aren't together anymore. We broke up," Gabriella answered quietly.

"What? Why?" Lily asked, her eyebrows furrowing. She couldn't understand why they would possibly break up.

"He lied and I can't forgive him for that," she answered.

"But he cared about you and you cared about him," Lily commented.

"I know, but things change and people change," Gabriella responded softly.

Maria sensed the awkwardness of the conversation and quickly interjected,

"Alright, who wants desert?"

Lucas and Lily quickly forgot all about the previous conversation and jumped on the opportunity for desert. Gabriella smiled softly at her mother, thankful that she had saved her.

Later that evening, Gabriella stood in the kitchen drying the dishes as her mother washed them.

"You miss him, don't you?" Maria observed.

"Of course I do," Gabriella admitted, "But that doesn't change the fact that I'm still mad at him."

Maria set her dishes down and turned to her daughter, "He was honestly only worried about you. He was trying to help. He knew how much our relationship was affecting you and he just wanted to try and mend things."

"He could have talked to me about it," Gabriella replied.

Maria shook her head, "Sweetie, do you honestly believe that?"

The young brunette looked to her feet, "No." She looked up again, "but he shouldn't have gone behind my back."

"Sometimes we do things like that for the people we love," Maria explained, "I've seen the way that boy looks at you Gabriella. He really loves you. Don't push him away."

Gabriella remained silent.

"Just think about it," she whispered as she set the last dish in Gabriella's drying pile.

* * *

Gabriella walked into school the next day feeling better than she had in a long time. Her spirits were lifted because of her newfound relationship with her mother, despite that mess that was her relationship with Troy. She wandered down the hall and opened her locker. As she put her books away, she suddenly missed the familiar presence of a certain blue-eyed someone. She quickly shook the thought from her mind – there was no way that she could forgive him for what he had done. She shut her locker door, maybe a little too loudly, which caught the attention of Taylor.

"Hey, you ok?" Taylor asked.

"Yeah..," Gabriella nodded unsurely, "Why?"

"Because you just shut that locker like the spawn of the devil was trying to escape," Taylor answered wittily.

Gabriella laughed, "I guess I just over-estimated my strength."

Taylor smiled at her friend, "I guess you did."

The smiled didn't fall from Gabriella's face as she spoke to Taylor, "So I have news."

Taylor almost stopped in her tracks as she turned to look at Gabriella, "Yeah?"

"You know how I've been seeing Lauren for a few weeks?"

Taylor nodded for her friend to continue.

"Well a few days ago we had kind of a breakthrough and I talked to Maria about everything and we're starting over, again," Gabriella explained, with a soft smile on her face.

"Gabriella!" Taylor exclaimed, "That's great! What helped you make that step?"

"I realized I'd been taking my anger out on Maria, when I should have been grieving with her. I chose anger over grief," she explained.

Taylor smiled proudly at her friend. She knew Gabriella would overcome her anger eventually and she was so thankful that that day had come. "I'm so happy for you," Taylor gushed.

Gabriella smiled, "I'm happy to start a new relationship with my mother."

"I feel like this is going to make the relationship you have with her stronger. If can overcome this, you can overcome any differences," Taylor pointed out.

Gabriella liked the sound of that. She wanted a strong relationship with someone again. Suddenly Troy's name popped into her head again. She'd had a strong relationship with him, hadn't she? He wasn't gone. Just like before though she pushed that thought from her mind. No. He'd broken a promise.

* * *

Gabriella walked to the back of her homeroom class. It was the only class she sat further back than the third row. If it had been an academic class, that might have presented an issue for Gabriella, because she had a tendency to day dream if she was too far back. However, for homeroom she was perfectly content to sit in the back row because it gave her time to think and observe the class – people watch if you will.

She watched as Troy entered the room. She had this sudden urge to jump up and run over to tell him about the latest development with her mother. He didn't make eye contact with Gabriella; in fact he didn't even look toward the back of the room.

Once the short class started, Gabriella completely zoned out of whatever Ms. Darbus was saying – she was lost in her own thoughts.

As her eyes wandered around the classroom, they landed on a familiar sight: Troy. She couldn't help but watch him; he didn't seem to be paying much attention either. He was fiddling with the pen he had in his hand. She wondered if he'd catch her staring at him when he looked back. Although, now that she thought about it, he'd stopped trying to fix what he'd done; he hadn't looked back at her in a few weeks and he certainly hadn't tried to talk to her. That sudden realization softened her heart a little bit. Had he moved on? Did he not care anymore? She wasn't sure. But regardless there was a sudden sadness that fell over her. Despite her anger, she did miss Troy and the thought that maybe he didn't miss her anymore made her heart hurt a little bit. Without thinking her hand flew up to her chest, searching for the metal object that usually hung around her neck: Troy's ring. When she remembered it wasn't there any longer, she thought about the day that he'd given it her. It was supposed to remind her that he'd always love her.

Suddenly, she missed the cool metal ring that often brought her comfort. She thought about the day she'd seen him with her mother and then she thought about how he'd chased her up the stairs. She could picture his soft blue eyes in her head. They'd been filled with sorrow and truth. Had she over-reacted? Had she been too blind with anger to see the truth? Had he really only been trying to help? She shook the thoughts out of her head - no he could have come talk to her. She would have been willing to listen, right?

Later on that day, she caught up with Kelsi in the hallway. She wanted to find out if someone else thought Gabriella might have been willing to listen.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" Gabriella asked.

"Of course," Kelsi smiled.

"And you'll promise to be honest?" Gabriella clarified. She was going to remove her own name from the story just to make sure Kelsi wouldn't sugarcoat her opinion.

Kelsi nodded, "Yes…"

"Hypothetically, let's say you had this friend who was going through a really hard time, so maybe his or her judgment wasn't great and he or she was kind of stubborn to begin with,"

Kelsi nodded suspiciously, "Ok…."

"And let's say that you want to help this person and you realize that you're going to need to tell this person that there are some issues with his or her logic. Do you think that that person is going to listen to you?" Gabriella asked.

Kelsi paused for a second, deciding on how best to answer, "Probably not. Especially if that person was really angry or upset. But I don't think that you can blame that person, I think that's just human nature."

Gabriella nodded. Kelsi was right.

"Why?" Kelsi asked, fully aware this situation wasn't so hypothetical. She just wanted to see if Gabriella would tell her anything more.

Gabriella shook her head, "No reason, I was just thinking about it."

The pianist nodded.

"Anyway," Gabriella interjected quickly, "I need to run. I'll see you later."

"Bye," Kelsi smiled as she watched Gabriella duck into a classroom. Maybe things were going to turn around soon, between Gabriella and Troy.

* * *

Gabriella wasn't having a very productive day at all. As she sat in history class she wasn't taking any notes, in fact, she wasn't even listening to what Mr. Miller was saying. She was far too consumed with her own thoughts. Her brief chat with Kelsi had forced her to question everything. Her stubborn tendencies had gotten the best of her. Perhaps she had been too hard on Troy. Perhaps he really had had her best interest in mind. And then, it hit her like a ton of bricks.

She'd screwed up. Big time.

She looked back at Troy, but instead of meeting his usual kind cobalt eyes, she only saw the top of his head as he scribbled down the notes. When he did look up to listen to the teacher, Gabriella whipped her head back around.

God, what had she done? Why had she let her emotions get the best of her? Troy had only been trying to help and she'd pushed him away. And now, now she'd really messed things up. She'd pushed him away and he was probably never coming back. He'd stopped his attempts to reconnect with her, probably because her words had been too harsh.

Could she fix this? Could she apologize? Could she find the right words? Would it be enough?

* * *

A few days later, Taylor sat down with Kelsi and Gabriella at lunch. She noticed Gabriella was being awfully quiet, even for Gabriella. Plus she'd been stealing one too many glances across the lunch room at a certain blue-eyed basketball player. It was the first time in weeks Gabriella was staring at Troy, and not with anger, but with a certain longing. Something was happening, something had changed.

Taylor touched Gabriella's arm, "Girl, you have got to stop staring."

Gabriella sat up suddenly, "What? I'm not staring. I don't know what you're talking about," she replied quickly.

Kelsi smiled, "Don't lie to us. What's going on?"

Gabriella looked down at her hand and suddenly found herself playing with the rings on her fingers.

"Gabi, you've been different ever since you made up with your mom. What's going on?"

"I think made a mistake and I don't think I can undo it," Gabriella whispered.

Taylor looked at Gabriella with concerned eyes, "With your mom?"

The brunette shook her head. Taylor suddenly realized that she was talking about the basketball player she'd be staring at all through lunch.

"Troy?" she asked softly.

Gabriella nodded, "I miss him. I miss his so much."

"He misses you too Gabriella," Kelsi tried to assure her.

The brunette shook her head, "He won't even look at me," she admitted.

"Oh sweetie, he's just trying to give you space. Trust me, he'd give anything to have you back," Taylor tried to reason.

Gabriella gave a weak smile, "You think?"

Taylor nodded, "I _know. _You should really go talk to him. Go get this sorted out. It'll make it better for the both of you."

Gabriella shook her head. "I can't. I'm so scared. I don't have the right words. I – I just. I can't," she whispered dejectedly.

Kelsi rubbed her friend's back, "You'll find the words Gabriella, I promise you will."

Later that day, Gabriella was standing at her locker packing up her bag. She noticed as Troy passed her silently in the hallway. She opened her mouth to say something, anything, but nothing would come out. She squeezed her eyes tightly, cursing herself for her shortcomings.

Kelsi appeared next to Gabriella.

"So I have an idea," she said.

"Yeah? For what?"

Kelsi handed Gabriella a flyer:

"**Open Mic!**

**Tomorrow night at 7pm at Catherine's Café"**

Gabriella looked up at Kelsi with confused eyes, where was Kelsi going with this?

"So you know how you don't really know how to apologize to Troy? I was thinking that you could sing a song," she suggested.

"Oh Kelsi, I don't know…"

"I even found the perfect song!" Kelsi added pulling out sheet music and handing to Gabriella.

Gabriella looked down at the song a read over it quickly. It was perfect. Maybe this was the right idea.

"What if Troy doesn't want to come?" Gabriella whispered sadly.

"Oh don't worry about that. I've got that covered!" Kelsi answered, "So this means you'll do it!"

Gabriella nodded, "Yes. It's perfect."

* * *

Kelsi stood outside the boy's locker room, waiting. As the boys filled out of the locker room she kept waiting. Usually Troy was one of the first out of the locker room so Kelsi was confused as to why it was taking so long. When Troy finally appeared she understood why it took him so long. Troy certainly wasn't his usual chipper self. He looked tired and sluggish. Kelsi sighed, hopefully things would get better soon.

"Troy," Kelsi called. Troy looked up and walked over to Kelsi.

"Hey Kels, what's up?"

"What are you doing tomorrow night?" she asked.

Troy thought for a moment, "Uhhhh nothing as of right now. Why?"

"Good! Because you should go to Catherine'a Café." Kelsi said.

"Why?" Troy eyed Kelsi skeptically.

"Because all of us are going and it'll be fun!" she smiled, "Come on! We'll grab dinner and just chat."

"Ok…" Troy agreed skeptically.

"I promise you won't regret it!" Kelsi grinned.

She could barely contain her excitement. More than anything she wanted to just tell Troy what was really going on. But if she did that then Troy would go running straight to Gabriella and Kelsi knew that Gabriella still needed time to figure out what she wanted to say to Troy. Besides, Kelsi really wanted to see Troy's face when Gabriella appeared on stage.

* * *

**A/N: So this was just all set up for the next chapter – which I know all of you will LOVE! Please leave me your thoughts! Thanks for reading!**


	20. Back to December

**A/N: Hi everyone! Thank you so much for the lovely reviews! I think you're all going to like this chapter ;) Enjoy…**

* * *

Chapter Twenty – Back To December

Troy walked into the crowded café. He had never seen it this busy before. He searched the crowd for his friends and quickly found them in a group. As he made his way over he noticed a small stage area had been set up.

"Troy!" Kelsi greeted, "I'm so glad you made it!"

Troy smiled, "I mean it seems like the whole world is here. Is something going on tonight?" he asked.

Kelsi grinned, "It's open mic night, who knew?" she shrugged.

Troy eyed her suspiciously and then looked around to see who else was there. His eyes landed on Maria, Lucas and Lily. Something was seriously up.

Lucas spotted Troy and quickly wormed his way through the crowd. "Troy!" he exclaimed.

"Hey bud," Troy replied, ruffling the boy's hair, "It's been too long."

"Definitely. But that's going to change," Lucas answered excitedly. Troy smiled sadly, with the ways things were going with Gabriella, the probably weren't going to change anytime soon.

"I don't know Luc," Troy shook his head.

Lucas only grinned and quickly went back to his family. Troy didn't have time to question the young boy before the MC walked onto the stage to introduce the show.

"Good evening and thank you for coming. Tonight we have some great talent lined up for you all. First up is high school student, Miss Gabriella Montez!"

Troy's head snapped up when he heard her name. He watched her as she walked out onto the stage. He was surprised to see her and wondered if he'd been set up. His eyes soften as he noticed her nervous demeanor. She wasn't looking into audience, but staring straight the piano waiting for her on stage. He wondered what she was doing on stage, he knew how much she hated preforming in public. This must be something important.

* * *

Gabriella walked out on to the small stage nervously. She hadn't really expected anyone to show up to this. The café was relatively small but it still felt like everyone was staring at her. She sat down at the grand piano and smoothed her jeans as a nervous habit. She closed her eyes and let her hands slip over the piano keys. As she pushed down on the keys, playing the beginning of the simple melody, she opened her eyes and started to sing.

_I'm so glad you made time to see me._

_How's life? Tell me how's your family._

_I haven't seen them in a while._

_You've been good, busier than ever,_

_We small talk, work and the weather,_

_Your guard is up and I know why._

_Because the last time you saw me_

_Is still burned in the back of your mind._

_You gave me roses and I left them there to die._

She took a breath and then bravely looked into the crowd as her voice grew stronger.

_So this is me swallowing my pride,_

_Standing in front of you saying, "I'm sorry for that night,"_

_And I go back to December all the time._

_It turns out freedom ain't nothing but missing you._

_Wishing I'd realized what I had when you were mine._

_I'd go back to December, turn around and make it all right._

_I go back to December all the time._

Her eyes landed on Taylor, Sharpay and then Kelsi, who all had encouraging smiles on their faces. The music picked up as she continued.

_These days I haven't been sleeping,_

_Staying up, playing back myself leavin'._

_When your birthday passed and I didn't call._

_And I think about summer, all the beautiful times,_

_I watched you laughing from the passenger side._

_Realized that I loved you in the fall._

_And then the cold came, the dark days when fear crept into my mind_

_You gave me all your love and all I gave you was "Goodbye"._

She found her mother in the large crowd with Lucas and Lily by her side. She was thankful that they could be there and that she'd made up with her mother. It made it so much easier to breathe.

_So this is me swallowing my pride_

_Standing in front of you saying, "I'm sorry for that night."_

_And I go back to December all the time._

_It turns out freedom ain't nothing but missing you,_

_Wishing I'd realized what I had when you were mine._

_I'd go back to December, turn around and change my own mind_

_I go back to December all the time._

When she looked up again, her mocha eyes found Troy's familiar blue eyes. As she sang the next verse their eyes never parted and she felt as though the whole room was disappearing. This was her favorite part of the song and she wanted it to be perfect. She needed him to know how much she missed him.

_I miss your tanned skin, your sweet smile,_

_So good to me, so right_

_And how you held me in your arms that September night -_

_The first time you ever saw me cry._

_Maybe this is wishful thinking,_

_Probably mindless dreaming,_

_But if we loved again, I swear I'd love you right._

She broke eye contact and looked at her piano in shame. She understood he might not forgive her for her anger. She might have gone too far.

_I'd go back in time and change it but I can't._

_So if the chain is on your door I understand._

_But this is me swallowing my pride_

_Standing in front of you saying, "I'm sorry for that night."_

_And I go back to December..._

_It turns out freedom ain't nothing but missing you,_

_Wishing I'd realize what I had when you were mine._

_I'd go back to December, turn around and make it all right._

_I'd go back to December, turn around and change my own mind_

She let her eyes close for the last few lines of the song as she sang softly.

_I go back to December all the time._

_All the time._

When the song finished, she opened her eyes again when she heard the room fill with applause. She stood up from the piano to take a bow. She smiled gratefully; at the same time, her eyes scanned the crowd. Suddenly she realized that Troy was gone. She could feel the smile fading from her face once she realized Troy had left. Her attempts had been futile. It was really over. He wasn't going to forgive her.

As Gabriella climbed down from the stage and walked back toward the dressing room, she fought back tears. When she walked in, she sensed a presence standing behind her. She turned around and her eyes met Troy's kind ones.

"Troy" she breathed, stopping dead in her tracks. She could feel her eyes brimming with tears. This was it, he was going to end it forever.

He started to make his way toward her, slowly, but surely and Gabriella started to ramble.

"Troy I – I was upset and I yelled and I thought – I thought you'd – but I was – I was wrong. And I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. And I- I understand if you don't forgive me, I mean you probably won't. And that's ok. I just wanted to say that I'm sorry. And that-"

Troy closed the distance between them. His hands found Gabriella's cheeks and he pressed his lips down to hers, interrupting her ramble.

Gabriella felt her eyes widen in surprise, but quickly let herself ease into the kiss. Her hands reached up to play with the hairs at the back of Troy's neck, something she hadn't done in what suddenly seemed like forever. Troy kept Gabriella's body close to his own as his hands moved down the sides of her body and landed on the small of her back. When their lips parted, Gabriella's head rested on Troy's chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart. She could feel the pent up tears fall from her eyes.

"I'm sorry," she murmured. Troy kissed the top her head.

"Shhh, you don't have to be sorry," he assured her, "I shouldn't have gone behind your back."

Gabriella shook her head and looked up at him, "No, I was stupid and scared and angry. I overreacted. And I'm so, so sorry for that."

Troy cupped Gabriella's face with his hands and gently wiped away the tears that had fallen, "why are you crying?" he whispered.

"I thought you weren't going to forgive me," she admitted.

"Gabriella Montez, I love you too damn much to ever let you go again," Troy told her seriously, "But you know, if you're gonna be my girl again, then you're going to need this back," he said as he opened his hand to reveal the chain that held Troy's class ring.

Gabriella gasped audibly, "How did you-?" Her mind thought back to the night she'd flung the necklace somewhere in her room.

Troy smirked, "I know people."

Gabriella smiled, "Will you put it on for me?" she turned around and pulled her hair off of her neck.

Troy took each end of the chain, carefully lifted the necklace around Gabriella's neck and secured the clasp. He smoothed his hands over her shoulders and couldn't resist placing a soft kiss on her neck.

"I missed you so much" he whispered.

Gabriella turned around and kissed him, "I missed you too," she murmured, her lips vibrating against his.

In that moment Gabriella remembered just how happy Troy made her. She felt butterflies in her stomach and her heart fluttering. All she wanted to do was spend the rest of the evening snuggled in Troy's arms laughing, talking and kissing. And suddenly she regretted missing all the opportunities over the past month to spend time with the one person in the world who made her truly happy.

"Thank you Troy, for everything," she whispered.

Troy pulled Gabriella close and wrapped his arms around her small frame. He placed a firm kiss on the top of her head. There were no words to describe how good it felt to have his Gabriella back in his arms.

"God I love you," he murmured.

* * *

**A/N: Soooooooo? What did you think? Cute? Let me know! For those of you who don't know, the song Gabriella sang was Taylor Swift's "Back to December." I imagined the version she played at the 2010 CMAs. I'll post a link in my profile. Just one more chapter left guys!**


End file.
